From The Innkeepers

April, Easter, Resurrections, and other Miscellaneous Musings

     T.S. Elliot long ago proclaimed that April can be the cruelest month.  And, so it is.  Mercurial movements in temperatures from below freezing to the 60’s or higher, only to plummet back down again, make us wonder if and when the face of spring will be here to stay.  We’ve had enough of this winter’s sputtering and hanging on with its occasional snow squalls, and we are ready for the greening of our world.

     April this year is the month in which Easter occurs.  In the Christian tradition it is the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection.  I remember fondly the Easters of my childhood, the coloring of eggs, the Saturday trip to church for the blessing of our Easter baskets filled with the food we would have after Mass on Easter Sunday.  Being of Polish heritage the basket always contained kielbasa, hard boiled eggs, ham, horseradish sauce made by my grandmother with fresh beets, a lamb made of butter, and my mother’s sweet babka bread made with white raisins. A finer breakfast could not be had anywhere on the planet that day than in the many Polish homes here in this country or in our native land.

     But as I think of the place of resurrection in my life now, and the traditions that influenced my thinking and my spirituality, it always poses the question: What within myself am I bringing to life this spring? Further, what are the three of us who staff the Rustic Gate bringing to life in those who come and spend time at our retreat center?  Beyond that with a more communal and global reach, how is something that was once presumed dead being enlivened by our thoughts, words, and actions?

     We hope this season that you take time to think on these things and harvest the quiet miracles of resurrection within and around you.

Blessings from our home to yours,

Marcia