Don’t you just love Pinterest? Usually, my endeavors at making a spectacular table for Easter falls far short of the images you see in the first picture above. The ideas always look so creative and seem like they would be easy, but not so much in my kitchen.

We are only a week away from Palm Sunday and the triumphal entry into Jerusalem by Jesus and His followers. Lent will be over, and the celebration of the Resurrection will begin. When my children were younger, there were always brand-new clothes. The girls would don their Easter bonnets and gloves along with shiny new shoes. Our son would fight putting on a tie, but eventually caved. There would always be an egg hunt and baskets filled with yummy treats. Then there would be a large meal, served at a table with a linen tablecloth. The fine China was placed within family silverware and crystal glassware from generations past. It was such a special occasion.

Gone are those days. We now have adult children with extended families, which we often must share for the day. When the grandchildren were younger, we continued with the egg hunt and fancy meal, but now we use paper plates and plastic silverware. Times change, but the season never does.

There was one Easter Sunday when we were to meet the entire family at church and enjoy a pancake breakfast. The church was filled with gorgeous lilies, hydrangeas, tulips and daffodils filled the area. The fellowship, after a rousing service praising God for His gift of salvation, was fun and filled with joy and hope. As we made our way home, I looked forward to another egg hunt with the grandkids. When we arrived, we found that our dog had consumed every jellybean in the house and our carpeting looked like Walt Disney had thrown up. Another Pinterest fail.

The world has its own interpretation of what this holiday is all about.  Chocolate comes in the form of bunnies and eggs.  Jellybeans stick to your dentures.  Sugary Peeps will turn hard in a week and taste much better after drying out.  Pies will be baked or purchased.  Hot cross buns and coconut covered Easter bunny cakes will pop up for dessert.  We’ll hide plastic eggs and find the missing one in a few months.  We no longer use hard boiled eggs because of that. New clothing will be purchased at high prices – it will be worn once. It’s another consumer holiday which beckons greeting cards and gifts.  Unfortunately, the true reason this holiday is so special to Christians, seems to get lost in all the trappings.

“For as by a man came death, by a man has come the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:21-22)