Easter Morning

10 am.

Here I sit in the living room, breakfast sizzling on the stove (which will need attending to in a moment), our pound cake dessert safely in the oven, baking...and the sun is shining. Amazing considering how wet and drizzly the last few days have been. Easter children around the Orem/Provo area at least have a sunny yard to discover hidden eggs in.

The weather is actually what got me pondering the true meaning of the day. Today is the day that Christ rose from the grave, fulfilling his destiny as the Savior of mankind. How appropriate then after several days of gray, wet, dark weather that the sun rises gloriously bright in an azure sky, filling the land with its warm rays.

The Easter bunny may have not made a stop at my house this morning...but an even more wondrous gift arrived instead....the promise that Eternal Life is available to each and every one of us. That loved ones long since past will be reunited in one great family reunion at the end of days.

The breeze coming in through the window smells sweetly of spring...and clean from the rain. How dear to me is the coming of spring...the chance to throw open our windows to the fresh air and clean out the stale air from being cooped inside all winter. No wonder women for centuries have opened their homes for a brisk "spring cleaning" at this time of the year. A chance to throw out the old and start shining and afresh.

Hmmmm....something I think I should do now and again as well. Maybe a little spring cleaning for the soul would not be such a bad thing...something to recharge and renew us for the coming year. Maybe that is why we have church conference in the spring and fall...a way of spring cleaning our spirits for the year to come...and a bit of spiritual preserving for the winter to come.

I have noticed that tucked between the peanut butter eggs, the marshmallow peeps and the chocolate bunnies that stores are starting to carry chocolate crosses. Perhaps its a reconciliation to the christian community for turning such an awe-inspiring confirmation into something so commercial. Its funny how schools teach that Thanksgiving came about as the early settlers celebrated a good harvest...thanks to the Native Americans who showed them what to grow, what to gather and where to hunt. The bounty gathered got them through that winter without starvation. Of course we eventually stole their lands and relocated them to reservations...so much for being thankful!

Sad then that schools do not teach the true meaning of this holiday...bringing about the saving of our souls. You would think such an important part of history would be glorified. But no, modern day schoolchildren learn instead about the reign of Hitler, the assassination of Lincoln and the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. Its probably a good thing then that Easter falls on Sundays...this way boys and girls can be reminded of the true meaning of the day. If they can stop daydreaming about all of the candy waiting for them in bright, pastel painted baskets.

I guess the candy industry knows what it is doing...after all, I am sure it is a lot more satisfying to nibble the ears off of a chocolate bunny than to chomp down on the arms of the cross.