Good Friday. As a child, it was the last church day before Easter, preceded by Holy Tuesday and Maundy Thursday. The day the black cloth was put on the cross and we left the church in darkness and silence. It meant two more sleeps until Easter morning and new clothes, egg hunts, baskets full of treats, and the flower cross at church. As a teen and young adult, it was just another Friday. As a young mother, it meant we would spend the weekend with my parents, get the kids dressed up, and go to church-something we didn't usually do.
Now? It means a day off of school. Two more sleeps before Easter morning and new clothes, egg hunts, baskets full of treats, but no flower cross at church (I really miss that--I've never been to another church that has done it, and while I was terrified of the bees that were drawn to it, I loved it and thought it was just so beautiful). It means running around trying to get things ready for Easter morning, things that I've neglected in a busy week of Easter preparedness at school.
Now? It means so much more. It is a reminder of the goodness of God. That he would look upon my sin and then offer his son upon the cross to save me. It means that for three hours, Jesus felt the total abandonment of God as He took my sins upon himself, just so in my times of loneliness and sorrow, I could feel His comfort and love. As a parent and a human, it just defies my understanding.
The girls and I will spend the day together, as the guys have work and school. We'll shop and plan for Easter morning. We'll cuddle and talk and laugh and cook. We may even dye an egg or two. I'm going to try the Resurrection Eggs with Hannah, to make this day more real to her. She knows it in her head. I want her to know it in her heart.
On Thursday, while I was preparing my classroom, she was busy drawing and coloring and cutting and glueing. "Look Mama! It's Jesus on the cross!"
"Wait! I need to make His smile. Because He loves us." Ahhh...the faith of a child. Love it.
"Jesus is Alive!"
I LOVE Good Friday too :) Partly because I love Easter Sunday...a LOT!
ReplyDeleteOur church does a flower cross every year for Easter and we're Episcopal so maybe it's just different denominations that do it. I always sneeze a lot-but seeing that cross covered in flowers is SO worth it!
That's so interesting, because I grew up in an Episcopal church! :) Never thought about it like that before!
ReplyDeleteBaptized and raised Catholic in the Philippines, from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, I grew up practicing tedious and meaningful religious traditions. And the Holy Week is a serious week for our family, that we were not allowed to make too much noise as it is a week of deep reflection.
ReplyDeleteI must have gone too far from my roots that none of these practices I grew doing, I don't do anymore or pass on to my young kids. So sad really. Sigh!