Easter has always been an important holiday for me. Not because of the religious aspect of the holiday, but it has always represented time with family. I remember going to church in our pretty new Easter dresses, hunting for eggs that the Easter Bunny hid in our yard, Easter brunch at my Godfather's house and spending time with my Grandfather and Crazy Nana!
I moved away from home when I was 18 years old and because of the distance between me and home, I rarely made it back to MA for Easter. Easter was always difficult when I was not spending it with family. When in college, my first year I spent Easter at my friend Patty's grandparents trailor park, my second year I spent alone in my room crying over a stupid boy, I have no recollection of my third year and my 4th year I spent with Heidi. I don't have any recollection of how Easter was spent when I lived in TX, but can remember each of my Easter's in SF very clearly.
We always did Easter at my house on the island. We usually had a good group of people. Some came for dinner and stayed, some came for the after dinner drinking games, but everyone (even those I didn't really care for) was ALWAYS welcome.
I was really worried about my first Easter away from SF when I moved to SC, but my bestfriend (AK) came to visit and we had an amazing time....of course, shortly after that visit things were not so great between us, but hey, this blog is about Easter. We went to FL and I was able to show him around Eckerd College, introduce him to my friend Al and take in a baseball game at Tropicana Field.
We lost my Godfather in February 2010 so I new last Easter was going to be tough for me. Thankfully my friend Julie and I decided to take our first vacation together and it was life changing! I was so thankful to be hanging out with a good friend in tropical paradise.
During Easter, I seem to cling to my Polish heritage more than any other time of year. I try to cook traditional foods (even though I still have not mastered pierogies). It seems to help me feel closer to my family and friends.
Don't get me wrong, the religious significance of Easter is not lost on me. I still following my Catholic upbringing and give something up for Lent every year. This year it was meat and I can't tell you how happy I am I will be eating meat in just a few days! I love the idea of making a sacrifice or committment and following through with your agreement with Christ.
So whether you are religious or not, I hope each of you have a wonderful Easter and remember to reach out to your loved ones because you never know if they will be with you this time next year!
