Celebrating Easter

Happy Easter!

This has been quite a Lenten season–one that makes me think of the warning

Be careful what you wish for.

I started off Lent the same way I usually do, attending Ash Wednesday service with the best of intentions of observing “a holy Lent.” This year I came as close to fulfilling that intention as I ever have.

I already had gotten into the habit of listening to the daily podcasts of the Morning Prayer service from the New Zealand Prayer Book (Anglican). I kept that up pretty religiously (sorry, I couldn’t resist!) although I did miss a few days.

I also attended church every Sunday, except for the day I ran in the George Washington Parkway Classic 10 Miler. That’s not so unusual, but sometimes my son’s lacrosse schedule interferes with my weekend plans. This year most of his games have been on weekdays.

I even spent several hours (over two days) on a great community service project–something I haven’t done in ages.

What made the most difference in this Lent was losing my father. As I’ve written here, from the moment it happened, I felt God’s presence, like I was living the 23rd Psalm:

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
Thou art with me.

I’ve probably never prayed more, contemplated the meaning of life more, considered my views on the resurrection more, or taken the “ashes to ashes” words of the Lenten service to heart more than I did this past Lent.

But now, Lent is over, and it’s time to celebrate Easter!

Easter is the first holiday that I am facing without my Dad, and I am steeling myself, because my Dad was such a big part of so many of our Easter celebrations. When my kids were younger, he and his wife used to host the best Easter egg hunts in their backyard. Everyone had so much fun that we would distract the kids so they could hide eggs to be found all over again!

Even after the kids got older, going over to “Grandaddy and Kathy’s house” on Easter remained a strong tradition. When the weather was nice, we would enjoy a scrumptious brunch on their patio, admiring their beautiful garden. Even if it was gloomy, we could count on a delicious meal and some silliness.

So, I am celebrating Easter this year, but I know it won’t be the same, and I understand that it might even be hard.

For a number of reasons, I decided to attend our Easter Vigil service on Saturday night instead of the traditional Easter service on Sunday morning. The Easter Vigil service is more “serious,” and attended mostly by adults. I love the children at our Sunday services, but figured that this year I might want to experience an Easter service without the fidgeting of little ones eager to hunt for chocolate eggs and jelly beans. Attending church on Saturday night also will free up my Sunday morning for a long run, so I didn’t have to squeeze it in on Saturday morning before my son’s lacrosse game. (Yes, one of his few weekend games was on Easter weekend!)

I also ended up offering to host an Easter dinner for family and friends. My mom wanted to bring over a Honeybaked® ham, and it spiraled from there (yuk, yuk). First I invited a friend, and then my sister-in-law said she wouldn’t mind driving over for dinner (she lives about 2 hours away). Now we are planning a feast, and I am looking forward to a nice evening.

And, of course, I made an Easter basket for my son. You’re never too old for a chocolate bunny!

Do you prefer Cadbury® Cream Eggs, Peeps® or jelly beans?

Does anyone have any black jelly beans they don’t want?