Easter Memories

In Those Days, Easter was a very special time for me. It was Spring and always seemed to be the most beautiful day of the year. It was my Mother's favorite day as well. Every year she made my sisters a new lacy pastel colored dress, and the boys usually got a new shirt or shoes, and a fresh haircut. My Mom would sometimes get a new bonnet, which made her the most beautiful person in my eyes.

We would awake early to search for our very own Easter Basket, and then search for colored eggs to fill the baskets. I was the eldest sibling at home during that time, so naturally I found the most eggs. It was hard to give them up to the youngers as Mom insisted. So they got the ugliest eggs from my find, unless I had found the egg with their name on it.

When I was about 11 or so, after questioning the Easter Bunny's existence for a few years, I announced to Mom that he was just a fake, because I knew that a rabbit could not lay eggs, let alone colored ones. Her response, "Those that don't believe, won't receive," rings in my ears even today. Because that year, I didn't get a basket, and had no where to put the eggs that I found. I cried until the afternoon of that Easter, when Mom called me to the kitchen, where while fixing dinner, she found a basket hidden in the oven. It was mine!!

Then it was off to church where the months of my mother's work paid off for her. She paraded us all in front of everyone. I absolutely hated people pinching my cheeks, and telling me how handsome my bow tie made me look. She was so proud of her children. And then, to a parade if one was held nearby.

Those Easter traditions carried though to my family. Mom tried hard to make each of my daughters a dress, and I bought their Mom a new bonnet, that she never wore. And the family Easter traditions continued, except for that bonnet, which remained in its case, on a shelf in the closet, to make me wonder whether she would wear it the following year. From the beginning, she said she would never wear it because she didn't like it, but I always thought it was as beautiful as the ones my mom wore. Perhaps that was the reason.

Enjoy your Easter in your way. No more baskets, bunnies, or bonnets for me (I'll miss the deviled eggs). We'll praise the Lord in our way, and watch as others celebrate their way. It's all good if you include the Lord in your life.