Sunday, April 24, 2011

Sentimental Sunday... The Hero and Easter Tradition.

Tonight, I went to dinner with the Hero's family to celebrate his twin's and oldest sister's birthdays. It was lonely there without him.  Even his mom had to choke back tears when she hugged me good bye and said "I wish the Hero could have been here." 
While we were visiting, I listened to my niece describing how her family's Easter Sunday was laid out.  It brought many years of Easter moments to mind. 
The Hero loved family.  It was his mother's tradition, when her children were older, to celebrate the oldest sister's birthday which is this week, with the twins birthday, which was the first of May, on Easter Sunday, because the whole family came to her house for Easter dinner.  We would get up, then let the children look for the hidden colored eggs for 30 minutes.  We then rushed to get everyone dressed (6 children and 2 adults) for church. Easter Sunday services were important for the Hero.  He loved the message of the atonement, and Christ's resurrection.  After church, we made the 2 hour drive to Grandmother's house.  At Grandmother's there was another round of Easter egg hunting and children playing while the adults prepared the dinner.  It was a time of visiting and getting to know one another.  It saddened the Hero when his mother went into and assisted living facility and the family gatherings became fewer and fewer.  The younger generation is now spread out across the US and making their own traditions now.  They all remember going to Grandmother's on Easter and the hidden prize of a plastic Easter egg filled with change for each.
We always had a family picture taken.
1983 

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