As I think I’ve mentioned more than once, my daughter is eager to learn to sew. It comes in fits and spurts. She wants to make the thing in the book that her very talented grandmother gave her but it’s hard.
She has my perfectionism and gets easily frustrated by the tedious nature of making small stitches into the fabric. She prefers a running stitch because it goes faster and I have to agree with her. There is a lot I want to rush through right now and there is a lot that feels tedious and frustrating as we wait for resurrection together. Will it come? Will it be all that we hope? Will it be enough this year with all that is happening around the world?
Sometimes Lent feels a bit too much like Lent but even as this season clings to me, here are some things that I’m trying to embrace beyond the frustration.
Among the frustrations I’m carrying, I am deeply concerned about what is happening in the United States. I cannot fathom what I’m reading right now. Living abroad right now, where this reality exists in snippets rather than my lived experience, I want so much to believe that the forces of Christian nationalism are not real. I am trying at my very best to pay attention. I’m not sure what action is required of me yet but I’m trying to practice curiosity rather than be overwhelmed by fear.
Some people have power songs and happy songs but when I listen to music that isn’t chosen by my children, I tend to listen to sacred music. As we move from Lent into what will come next, I’ve switched to listening to this playlist. I am very much in the Hosannas right now.
I claimed recently that I’m not so sure that we need to experience death to know resurrection and then I read this which reminded me again why this assertion is so important. It is said so well here too.
A few weeks ago, I made yogurt flatbreads with my girls. They both loved eating them and had a blast making them and so I’m thinking it might be fun to celebrate the feast part of Maundy Thursday with flatbreads, hummus, olives, meatballs and a few simple salads like this one. I may include some liturgical elements from Kneaded Love but my girls are mostly going to want to wash feet. They love this part and so do I.
As we have been in Europe and enjoying traveling as much as humanly possible, this is the first year in several years that we will actually be home for Easter. So I’ve been thinking about other things I might plan for these holy days together with my atheist husband and two little girls when church isn’t a part of our experience.
a nature walk with this wonderful scavenger hunt
have a little sing along on Good Friday of sad songs which will include some hymns that tell the story but really just allow space for all that grief (thanks to Laura Alary for this wonderful idea in this resource guide for her book Make Room)
holding onto this poem by Maren Tirabassi, Holy Week Heresies, which seems to capture so much of what I have been feeling at this moment in time
reviving our family tradition of an Easter Vigil bonfire which may take on a German twist this year with sausages and potato salad in the woods
an egg hunt that reclaims my stepmother’s clues full of wordplay and puns that will totally be lost on my girls but will eventually lead to the hidden baskets
I know there will be snacks and cake (as I have to share my birthday with Jesus this year) but I wasn’t really sure what worship would look like until I created Resurrection Anytime. It comes with a Spotify playlist because I am completely captivated by the dance parties
has every year in church on Easter Sunday. And so, we will have a dance party too. (If you are anywhere near the Bay Area, you should go celebrate the resurrection at Molly’s church.) I would love to hear how you are choosing to celebrate these holy days if they are holy for you.What are you finding to be tedious in this season? How are you being invited to embrace what else could be? Where are you finding hints of resurrection in you as the calendar turns to April?
If you are interested in spiritual direction and are interested in a first conversation with me, please reach out or go ahead and book an appointment here. I am currently welcoming new directees and would be delighted to explore the holy threads of this life with you.