The Friday before Palm Sunday (April 11th), Jeff and I attended a Passover Seder. Laura Hawkins, our friend who used to take our family pictures, is of Jewish descent. Her mother's family is European Jewish and even had relatives who died during the Holocaust. Along the way, Laura's mother converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but the traditions of her family live on. Laura and her sister, Kerrie, consider themselves Messianic Jews based on heritage. They have traveled to the Holy Land and met with relatives that live there. These two women have felt drawn to their family's roots and have desired to know more of our covenant heritage. In so doing, they decided to host a Passover Seder. They were meticulous in their preparation because they wanted to do it right. They wanted to honor the actual festival while incorporating their current Christian beliefs. I loved it! I loved seeing Christ in the holy rituals. I loved thinking of Christ during that Last Supper and seeing how he used the Passover to institute a higher law. The whole evening helped me understand this festival better...and how to do it better for our little family during Holy Week.
Palm Sunday (April 13th) kicked off our Easter week. The girls and their families joined Jeff, Jonas, and I as we indulged in a burrito bar (because Christ rode a donkey {aka burro in Spanish} into Jerusalem) and Palm "sundaes" for dessert. I also had a couple of games to play on what would have been a day of celebration for Christ and His followers. The little kids got to search for puzzle eggs that depicted the story of Holy Week then the adults played a fun round of Easter Family Feud.
The rest of the week was a little more simple. Monday (April 14th) I took Jonas to the temple with a treat after school to consider what Christ had done at the temple during that day of Holy Week. We talked about how Christ cleansed the temple and then healed the sick (which is often overlooked). We discussed ways in which we felt that we may need His cleansing and healing power in our lives.
Tuesday (April 15th) Christ taught the people so we decided to see the new animated movie, King of Kings, that depicts His life. (We also ended up watching all of season 5 of The Chosen in theaters during the week too. That season begins on Palm Sunday and ends with Judas betraying Christ with a kiss.)
Wednesday (April 16th) the gospels are silent as to what happened that day. This day is sometimes referred to as the Day of Silence during Holy Week. Still, we decided to don simple red bracelets as a reminder to reach out and show love throughout the day. We may not be exactly sure what Christ was doing that day, but we can be pretty certain He continued to show love.
Thursday (April 17th) I hosted our own little Passover feast. It was a simplified version of the real thing for practical purposes (such as the fact that Jonas would have lost interest after the first cup of "wine"), but we verbally went through the order of the festival and the meaning behind the rituals. I still don't understand everything, but the more I learn, the more I love to share the connections I find between this holy Jewish festival and Christian beliefs.
Friday (April 18th), Jacob, Amber, and Beau joined us as we hiked to Escalante Cross. This is our second year of making this mini (and I do mean MINI) pilgrimage up Spanish Fork canyon to the cross...and I love it. I love that the hike requires effort. I love that we pass people climbing to the cross for the same reason we are. I love that I can find small moments on the trail to reflect on the "why" behind our hike. And, I love doing it with my family. I love bringing them here. I love that they are willing to walk the path with me.
Saturday (April 19th) is the day when the tomb was shut. It was a day when the heavens seemed closed and grief seemed all-encompassing. Some say this is a "day of rest". This morning, Jeff, Jonas, and I spent a little time in rest as we finished watching part 3 of The Chosen season 5. I was grateful for the time I had to reflect on the events surrounding his crucifixion. I was able to consider different points of view and perhaps even offer grace to those who were with Him. I saw myself in his apostles. I saw my struggles to see Him and truly hear Him. And I saw His grace and the hope of his atoning sacrifice. I was grateful for that morning because the rest of the day was not a day of rest! After we returned home, Jonas and I started to color eggs. I bought a couple new egg coloring kits. One utilized a pendulum to paint the eggs and the other was an egg drop kit. We did both! We colored the eggs using the pendulum then Jonas carefully constructed different apparatuses to see if the egg would crack when dropped off the deck (and eventually the zip line platform). It was actually a lot of fun to try these new twists on the traditional egg coloring. After an hour or so, the girls and their families started to trickle in (along with Kelly and Becky Irons). Amber and Laurin brought another new way to color eggs using silk fabric squares. The eggs turned out so pretty! Beau had no interest in coloring the eggs...only eating them; and Carter and Everly loved the volcano egg dye kit like we did last year.
After we finished coloring eggs, Dallin, Audrey, Katie, and Greg joined us for our traditional burgers and potato salad before we hid eggs. Not everyone participated in hiding the eggs this year. It was mostly the kids (Dallin and Audrey included). I love that Carter and Everly still get excited about it because I think Jonas is phasing out of that tradition. He likes getting the candy eggs, but doesn't feel like he's that great at finding them. Once those who wanted to find eggs finished, Jeff started a new golden egg tradition. In years passed, he has hidden the eggs to be found. That has had its hiccups as emotions set in regarding who really found them based on if the egg was seen first or in hand first. In any case, he decided to use the eggs as a reward for game winners. We chose games that required skill, luck, and kindness. One game had everyone throwing ax at a target. The next game we had to choose a partner for the egg toss. The final "game" was to simply choose a peep chick and the one with the jelly bean won. The last golden egg was given to the person who showed the most kindness (although no one knew this was an ongoing observation made by Katie throughout her time with us). I think everyone enjoyed the events (except for those who got the egg shattered during the egg toss).
Easter Sunday was truly a day of rest. Jeff, Jonas, and I attended our Easter sacrament meeting and program to start the day. We enjoyed meaningful music and words that allowed us to reflect on our Savior's atonement and resurrection. After church, Jonas and I made resurrection rolls then Dallin and Audrey invited us on a walk with them. I really enjoy having them live so close. We don't necessarily see them more than we used to, except in little moments like this. Following the walk, Jeff decided to take a nap. He had unfortunately gotten sick and didn't sleep well the night before. Jonas and I played board games, had a sword fight, and shot nerf arrows while he was sleeping. Finally, the girls and their families came back over for our Easter dinner (e.g., Lamb {or actually roast because not everyone likes lamb}, funeral potatoes {because He died}, a garden {of Gethsemane} salad, rolls {because the stone was rolled away}, and angel food cake {because He lives again} for dessert). We gathered outside the rest of the evening and watched the older boys shoot their bows while the kids played on the trampoline and swings. It was a beautiful day of rest, reflection, and family. I am beyond grateful for my Savior. Because of Him, I have hope that I will one day enjoy the warmth of the sun (Son) with my family in the eternities.
