Charlotte Croft has sent a photo that is both meaningful and artistic. Recently, she took an unexpected trip to Illinois to “say goodbye” to her dear father who had passed away. The photo speaks of beauty found at an unexpected time. Sunlight and moonlight are heaven sent.

Things made by man are transient, as are we all. We are but a blip on the radar, and then, we are gone. In the meantime, it is wise to enjoy beauty wherever we observe it: in the sparkling eyes of a child, the roaring waves of the ocean, crashing upon the rocks, or in the fleeting appearance of spring blooms. At the end of any day, we can only hope that we have done our best.

A beautiful sky image taken by Charlotte Croft

Thanks, Charlotte, for all that you share, and all that you do for everyone. We rejoice with you in the happy times, and our hearts are sad, in times of loss.

Charlotte reports having seen many Robins and heard “peepers” on March 2, 2008, a day the daffodils were also blooming in Illinois. She arrived home to tall piles of Vermont snow. Spring should reach New England by May, with any luck.

Patricia Cummings

Today, Christians around the world celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ who was found to be absent from his tomb, a situation that defied any logical explanation, then or now. During his short lifetime, Christ was both revered and hated. Born a Jew, he was mocked as the “King of the Jews.” The world would revile anyone who called himself, “the Son of God.”

The world’s people often hold in disdain that which is beyond their understanding. That is most certainly true when it comes to people judging others. Each individual always believes in the sanctity of his or her own thoughts and actions. Perhaps, it is just human nature to be that way.

Now, my thoughts turn to the time when I was a child. Easter Saturday was always a time of hurried activity, as Mother made sure the children had something suitable to wear to church the next day. She would color Easter eggs, make a frosted cake, and prepare an Easter basket with chocolate bunnies, jelly beans, and marshmallow chickens, and cover the basket with an overlay of colored cellophane. She’d go to the grocery store to gather up food for a special meal on Easter.

In the family album, there is one picture of me on Easter, standing on the steps of our house. I was very young. I am wearing a dress that is too short, short socks and (no doubt) patent leather shoes. I am holding a black duck, a stuffed animal, given to me by my oldest brother. I look pretty chilled, with my long, skinny legs hanging out in the cold of a New Hampshire early spring.

In those days, women wore the ever-present hat and gloves to church. We listened to corny music, like the “Easter Parade,” on a small turntable that could play 45 RPMs. Sometimes, we went to the park to participate in Easter Egg Hunts. I always wondered how Chocolate Bunnies and colored eggs were incorporated as part of the celebration.

On one particular Easter, my sister who is thirteen years old than me, decided to shock my parents by bringing me the gift of two live chicks. These yellow fluff balls turned out to be loud, crowing adult roosters, much to the annoyance of the neighbors; and pecking beasts who liked to be vicious to the hands that fed them, usually me. So much for bright ideas! We toted them to “the country,” when we later moved to a small town, and they ended up in a neighbor’s stew pot, proving the point that all vicious roosters will meet justice.

Today, is a “different day” than those Easters of my past. As our soldiers pray to a God, whom they hope keeps them safe, and returns them to their families, life has changed for me as well. I am without company today. My loved ones are dead; or far away, with lives and issues of their own; or else, at work, making sure that others have a good day.

The only celebration for me will be to listen to the radio, to do my usual work, and to cling to the promises of the Risen Christ, the only remaining hope for humanity. Nothing is forever, and sometimes, it is great consolation knowing that is also true of this life.

However you spend the day, I wish you a Happy Easter, a harbinger of Spring!