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. The ideas always look so creative and seem like they would be easy, but not so much in my kitchen. We’re only a day away from Palm Sunday and the triumphal entry into Jerusalem by Jesus and His followers. For some that means an end to what they’ve given up for the past 40 days, while others prepare for a week leading up to the cruel treatment of Jesus, his death and resurrection. Lent will be over, and the celebration of His Resurrection and our salvation will begin.

In the olden days, Easter was a day of great celebration. My sister, my mom and I would all get new dresses and shoes. We’d don our Easter bonnets, put on our white gloves and patent leather shoes, and off to church we’d go. We’d then have a wonderful meal with other family members and overload on jellybeans and chocolate bunnies.

When we began our own family, the traditions continued. We’d go to church in new clothes. The kids would hunt for Easter eggs in the backyard. Plastic grass would be strewn throughout the house. Easter is also a time to celebrate spring and the end of a long time in the snowy desert. This year, the winter snow waited until the first week of spring! I usually planned a special meal, served on the family China along with silverware that needed to be polished each year. Many of the fancy items on the dinner table have been stored away and aren’t used anymore. Gone are those days. We now have adult children with extended families, which we 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.

We no longer put on a big spread for important holidays. Things change when you get older. 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.  Eggs will be hidden and searched for. The missing ones will show up in a few months.  We no longer use hard boiled eggs for obvious reasons. New clothing will be purchased at high prices. 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 commercial trappings.

When we place so much importance on the flashiness of Easter, we lose the true joy that comes from it. This week, prepare your hearts for this amazing gift which God provided for all mankind. The gift comes with no strings attached. Pinterest can’t begin to compare.