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Easter 2010

Bonnie
4 April 2010

Easter comes on April 4th this year (2010). It certainly does seem like time has been flying by! Winter is gone, spring is here, and in the Pacific Northwest we are already out in our yards, discussing life with the weeds and doing he first few sessions with mowing the yard. Easter dinner will be quite different this year, as my sister and I are both on diets that we are serious about (hers more restrictive at this time than mine). But we w ill be together, with my mother, as family, celebrating this wonderful day.

I have very good memories of Easter from when I was a child. We lived in Minnesota, and were just coming out of the heavy winter snows. Easter always meant a new coat and hat (yes, girls wore hats in those days!), perhaps a new dress, and a small token present from the Easter Bunny. We also got Easter baskets from our parents and grandparents, and attended church.

My poor mother had three small children that were totally excited about coloring Easter eggs! I remember the little bowls of dye, and dipping the eggs with a wire holder. I was never highly creative at this, but that didn’t matter, because I was having fun!

Easter dinner was a family dinner, with parents and grandparents, and was a time when the whole family spent the day together. It was a good time, and was a tradition that I carried on into adulthood, gathering around me close friends to celebrate the day. (I have lived away from where my family lives for most of my life.)

The foundation of Easter is that it is one of the most important Christian religious celebrations of the year. In some traditions it is seen as the day Jesus was resurrected. An interesting fact about Easter is that the date that it is celebrated changes – it is considered to be the first Sunday after the full moon celebrating the vernal equinox. The date that Easter is celebrated can be anywhere from March 22nd to April 25th,Easter is linked to the Jewish celebration of Passover largely because of its symbolism.

The resurrection brings us new hope, and is very connected with the nature of spring, and new growth in the natural world. Easter is connected with the pagan goddess of spring – Eastre. Easter also marks the end of the forty-six day Lenten season. The symbol of the Easter Bunny comes from the pagan celebration of Eastre, as the early Anglo-Saxons worshiped the Goddess through her symbol, the bunny rabbit. The symbol of the Easter rabbit was brought to America by German immigrants.

The exchange of eggs (representing fertility) is also an ancient custom. As a symbol of rebirth, it was sometimes wrapped in gold leaf, or colored using roots or flowers boiled in water to create different colors. In present times Easter egg hunts are carried out as part of family, church and community celebrations. The eggs can be boiled eggs that are colored or decorated, chocolate eggs, marshmallow eggs, or plastic eggs with candy inside. In the US, this is also done on the White House lawn, connecting politics back to its roots with the people.

In modern times we celebrate Easter in many different ways. We celebrate Easter as a religious service, but we also bring it deeply into our homes. This will be the first year that I have not decorated my home for Easter. I do not want the candy out (remember – I am dieting!), and it is just a time when I feel that holding the thought of what Easter represents in my heart is what I need to do. Next year I am sure that the decorations will come out again!

Besides decorating Easter Eggs, and creating colorful Easter baskets (both of which I do – love those marshmallow bunnies and peeps, and the tiny, colorful jelly beans!), there are stuffed animals to set out (a big thing in my family), and personal decorations. One of my Aunts has a tiny tree that she hangs even tinier decorated Eggs from. It is so simple, yet so beautiful!

Then there are beautiful Easter cards (paper cards and e-cards – there is a place for both!). And Easter flowers – traditionally, with my family, it is the Easter Lily. Whatever ones own tradition is, this is where energy needs to be placed. Easter is a celebration that is both religious and secular in nature. The one thing that has somewhat gotten out of hand (as it has for virtually all holidays) is the commercialization. Shop and celebrate according to your own wants, needs and tastes. Be authentic to who you are, not to whatever the stores are pushing.

This is a celebration of life, and a magical time when new shoots are coming up, the leaves are coming out on the trees, the weather is warming up, and we are moving into another part of the cycles of the year. It is a time for children to be children, to enjoy themselves while they learn about their culture and their faith. It is a time for communities to bond together and celebrate who they are.

What is Easter to you? What are your memories? Are your carrying on old traditions? Are you creating new traditions? Does your home reflect your feelings about this time of year? As we go through the seasons, it is important to honor each one, and mark it in our own way in our life. These are the touchstones that keep us grounded and centered, and allow us to honor who and what we are at all times.

Wishing each of you a very Happy Easter from all of us at PsychicPower.com!

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