On The Inside

What a glorious Easter weekend it was!  Honestly, the weather could not have been more perfect here in South Texas.  The warm caress of the sun felt like a hug from the Lord himself and the mild, gentle breeze was fun to watch as it flirted with the leaves on the trees and on the ground.  The unwelcome and unwanted oak pollen is still hanging around, but we won’t talk about that.  Only the good stuff.  Only the good.

What a beautiful way to end the Lenten season.  The festivities started on Thursday with class parties for my three kiddos.  We ended the day with Holy Thursday Mass as we celebrated and remembered the Last Supper.  Father Bentil washed the feet of the “disciples” who happened to be a little younger than the ones in the Bible.  A dozen second graders who will be receiving their First Holy Communion this year had the opportunity for this special role…and they LOVED it!  I think there might have been a couple of extra disciples this year, but Father thought that surely Mary was there and maybe a friend too, right?

The high school students of our parish led the Good Friday Stations of the Cross, which was probably THE most memorable Stations that I have ever been to.  Each student was a character along Jesus’ walk to Calvary.  They explained what was happening from their perspective and asked all of us, “Were YOU there?” after each Station.  Powerful.  I hope to get a copy of that script very soon.

On Friday evening, our friends, Lindsey and Darrell, invited us over for a big fish fry and glow-in-the-dark egg hunt.  We had a wonderful time visiting and the kids had a blast playing together and dyeing eggs.   The highlight was finding the eggs at night as they sprinkled the grass in an array of neon rainbow colors.  Who knew that a glow-in-the-dark bracelet squished inside a plastic egg would captivate the attention of both kids and adults alike?  Fun times!

Saturday and Sunday were days full of family, church, and laughter as we gobbled up all the foods we had given up for Lent and burned the subsequent calories while laughing about my phone.  Yes.  That’s right.  My phone.

How on earth could talking about a phone produce enough laughter to burn off 500 calories?  Well, this isn’t just your ordinary phone.  It’s a bedazzled, bejeweled LG flip phone.  Don’t be hatin’ and please don’t be jealous.  Ha!

It all started when I pulled the phone out of my purse to call a friend with directions to the Easter gathering on Saturday.  I think the gorgeous gems glistened a little too much in the sunshine and blinded my cousin, Laurie.  She said, “OH MY GOSH, WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT?!”  (Yes, she said it in all caps!)  “Oh, this?  This fancy gal is my FABULOUS FOOHHNN, sista!”  I replied back with a smirk.

That’s when the fun began.  EVERYONE wanted a glimpse (and a laugh) at my one-of-a-kind phone.  Hey!  My phone is functional.  I can get a signal when many phones can’t.  I can place calls.  I can receive calls.  The phone hugs my face like a phone should.  (hee hee)  AND, my phone is unique.  NO ONE has one quite like it.

Oh, the ribbing would not stop!  (I seriously enjoyed it!)  “Does that thing work?  Oh, gosh, it’s just horrendous!  Do you really talk on that atrocious phone in public?  I think I’d run and hide when I got a phone call.”  And, so it went…on and on and on.

Oh mercy, how we laughed!  Heck, I’m still cracking up as I write this.  I totally went with it and told them that when I answer it, I stop everything I’m doing and kick my hip out to the side and say, “Hello, dahling” every single time I open that baby up!  It’s not just a phone.  It’s an experience.  Heh!  I told them that flip phones would come back around, just like those big ole head phones.  For realz.  Then, EVERYONE will want my vintage phone.  Everyone.  Ha ha!

I told them, “You’re welcome for helping you burn all those calories with copious quantities of laughter.  Now, go grab another Easter cookie and thank me!”  I told them that it really wasn’t about the outside, it’s what’s on the inside.  When I open that phone, it’s just an empty phone line ready to be filled with words and laughter.  Surely, they’ll laugh the next time they call me and remember what I said, “Give me a ring-ring on my bling-bling!”

Anyway!  Speaking of inside vs. outside, my friend, Lindsey, recommended a crafty little website called “Catholic Icing” that looks to be lots of fun.  I’ll definitely be checking it out in further detail soon.  But, the one thing that I ADORED was on the blogger’s “About Me” page.  Lacy Rabideau writes:

“I’d also like to say that I get asked this question a lot: ‘How do you do it all?’  My answer is, ‘I don’t.’  Remember that no matter how many of my blog posts you read, the bad stuff never goes up here.  Never compare the inside of your family to the outside of another, and please don’t let Catholic Icing be a place where you get your daily dose of inadequacy!  If you knew me in real life, you’d know better!”

I love her honesty!  “Never compare the inside of your family to the outside of another.”  Aren’t those wonderful words of wisdom to tuck away for a rainy…or down-in-the-dumps kinda day?  I think so.

Another inside vs. outside thing to remember is why eggs are so popular at Easter.  Why in the world do we use so many eggs?  Eggs celebrate new life.  For many Christians, the egg is a symbol of Jesus' resurrection.  The outside shell is like the tomb.  Once cracked, they stand for the empty tomb.  New life springs forth…either as a baby bird…or as the new life in Jesus Christ.  Christians remember that Jesus, after dying on the cross, rose from the dead.  This miracle showed that life could win over death.  Eggs were always thought to be special because although they do not seem alive, they have life within them.

Over the years, I might have heard bits and pieces about the Easter eggs being symbolic of new life, but I don’t think I’d heard about why we dye them.  On Catholic Icing, Lacy shares:  “It is said that Mary Magdalene met with Tiberius Caesar after Jesus’ resurrection, and she was carrying an egg.  She proclaimed to him, ‘Christ has Risen!’  He scoffed at her and told her that that was as unlikely as the egg in her hand turning red.  Then a miracle happened and the egg immediately turned red!  It’s great to remember where this tradition of dyeing eggs started.  Make Easter about the Lamb, not the bunny!”

When I reminisce about all the egg hunting that went down this past week, I remember that my children weren’t really hunting for the plastic egg itself.  They wanted what was inside. 

As we journey through this gift of life, what are WE hunting for, looking for, searching for, and yearning for?  The egg or what’s inside?

Norman Cousins once wrote, “Death is not the greatest loss in life.  The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live.”  Let’s never let the love for our Lord die within us.  “God’s not dead!  He’s surely alive!  He’s living on the inside.” (Newsboys)  Let’s be grateful for the new life within us as we thank God for what happened at Easter!

Have a wonderful week, Sunshines!