This Sunday is Easter, the greatest Christian holiday on the Church calendar. Regardless of whether the date is correct, or the celebration has turned to more of the Easter bunny than the real reason, it doesn’t change this fact: Jesus Resurrection is the Reason for the Season.
So, I am not going to remind us of the depth of the reason. You can find out the details almost anywhere you choose to research, including at church. So, I just wish you a blessed, deeply moving Easter!
Easter brings back memories for us all, and past traditions, feelings, and remembrances are a part of how we celebrate our Easters now.
I called on Facebook friends to find out what they remembered about their Easters of the past. They are always so faithful to answer.
Judy S, answered, “white gloves.” Sandra: “new dress.” Sandra: “No matter how little we had, we always had a new dress, usually home-sewn.”
“What is a dress?” I ask.
Carrie remembers the preparation with hair and clothing, but most of all her learning Easter speeches to recite on the resurrection of Jesus.
Don: Easter service dressed to the nines, then out to the Country Club for dinner.
Anna remembers her mother using bobby pins and setting her hair in curls overnight so her hair would curl. “One year the Easter bunny brought each of us six kids a 6 pack of bottled pop.” One of her brothers drank all his that day, but the rest of the kids cherished theirs since pop was special. The family always took a picture before going to church.
Anna and others remarked on the beautiful music, the traditional songs in church. “He Arose,” “Christ the Lord has Risen Today,” and the “Hallelujah” chorus.
Group description of Easter dinner: Scalloped, or cheesy potatoes, ham with pineapple glaze, deviled eggs, strawberry shortcake, carrot cake, dinner rolls, asparagus.
Judy: Got white shoes for summer at that time.
Sue K.: Recalls new dresses, hats, little purses, white gloves, and white socks with lace. The Easter bunny came early before church, and “we loved our baskets.” She remembers Easter egg hunts in the yard, and for several days afterwards.
Judi K.: New dresses for every Easter and sometimes we wore hats. We dyed hard-boiled eggs.
Ruth: Easter baskets were always filled to the brim with goodies and hidden in the house because there was always three feet of snow outside on the ground in Minnesota at Easter time. I thought it was “quite different” when I moved to Kansas where Easter eggs filled with candy were hidden outside.
Nancy: Dresses, gloves, hat sometimes, spring jacket or sweater, could wear white, dying eggs, big meal with family, big church service, beautiful music with trumpets and violins and always celebrating “Jesus is Risen.”
In summary, what everyone is saying, is that there was preparation for this day. Easter is not a “season.” It is a day. It marks the end of a week of learning about the Garden of Gethsemane, the Last Supper, the Trial, the Scourges, and finally, on Easter, the Resurrection.
What is better than to prepare by donning your best clothing, and learning recited lines for a special service? It’s not that the “new” is important. It’s not about money or affording fancy clothes. No, it’s about the preparation. The expectation. The victory. The promise.
Happy Easter.
Judi Tabler lives in Pawnee County and is a guest columnist for the Great Bend Tribune. She can be reached atjuditabler@gmail.com.
