Happy Easter 2022
For the record, it doesn't feel like Easter. I think it's partly because we did not go to Mass. It isn't for lack of wanting.
The best Easter I can remember as an adult was over a decade ago. I was part of the choir. We did masses from Holy Wednesday (the tenebrae service) onward, and both Masses on Easter Sunday.
Family strife caused me to walk away after that. I stopped singing in the choir. I stopped going to church. I stopped believing. The details don't matter. It was my choice.
That doesn't mean I won't drive my mother to Mass and sit beside her. COVID, however, has kept her from wanting to go out. She's almost 87. She has lung cancer. It's her choice. But she hasn't walked away from Church or God. She takes Communion from the Eucharistic minister when he visits her at home. She prays daily, morning and night.
Feh. I should rekindle my faith. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry of the Episcopal church makes more sense than most people.
“Being a Christian is not essentially about joining a church or being a nice person, but about following in the footsteps of Jesus, taking his teachings seriously, letting his Spirit take the lead in our lives, and in so doing helping to change the world from our nightmare into God’s dream.”
That does make sense. (Also, perhaps all the things suddenly settling into a positive place are a result of my Episcopalian father whispering in God's ear? Dunno.)
In other news... we celebrated our Easter at home. Mum did all the cooking. It wasn't that we didn't want to help. She was eager to do her lamb her way, plus try out a new sweet potato recipe. And she did ask for help when she needed it.
I hope this isn't her last Easter. She needs to add a few more years on before shuffling off this mortal coil. I want to sit down with her and work on her plays and instructional book. Mostly, I want to learn from her all the things that have ever mattered to her. Tall order? I don't even know what I meant when I typed it. I'm crying as I read it.
The lamb tasted as good as always. The sweet potato recipe was a hit. And Jeff got all the dishes, pots, and pans done before I had even finished stripping the bone.