March 21, 2008
"The story of Easter is the story of God's wonderful window of divine surprise." --Carl Knudsen.
Easter is always the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox, and this year it comes early, almost too early.
It is a premature surprise to many of us, too, especially those among us who have Christmas decorations still not packed away and sitting on the basement floor. Wasn't Christmas just the other day, we ask?
How is it that Easter is upon us so soon?
According to the email rumor mill, this is the earliest Easter any of us will ever see again in our lifetimes.
The next Easter this early will be on March 23, 2228 (220 years from now). Only folks 95 years or older have seen one so early, back in 1913. In fact, Easter can actually be one day earlier, March 22, but do not hold your breath. That will be 227 years from now.
I checked the above facts on Snopes.com, the urban legend truth detector website, and they pass the smell test.
Even though Easter is surprisingly early this year, it is typically a holiday with traditions that do not change often or at least do not surprise us much.
Perhaps that is why I have trouble remembering most Easters. Special Christmases stand out more in my memory, but Easter holidays, well they all seem the same to me.
All but one, that is, arguably our family's best Easter ever because it was surprisingly different than any other.
We were building a new house at the time and moved in before it was finished. Please do not tell the building inspector.
A kitchen? Not finished yet. No place to cook Easter dinner.
No bathroom in the house was complete although one had a toilet and another just a shower.
Undaunted, we hunted Easter eggs in the muddy-grassless yard, changed to our Easter finery, and attended Sunday service. The church served an Easter brunch so that took care of breakfast.
We dined on carry-in pizza for our Easter dinner, served on paper plates. We sat down on boxes to eat at a wobbly wallpaper table. Some sat on the stairs, and they made the best decision because the table could not hold under pressure of several leaning elbows. Down it came. Pizza splattered and drinks spilled. No worries. The carpet was not stained because there was only bare sub-flooring underfoot.
It was a no-frills Easter Sunday and certainly not a boring one, and therein lies the message.
Despite its lack of Easter ham, deviled eggs, or homemade cinnamon rolls, this Easter was surprising indeed, and isn't that the point?
The Christian meaning of Easter is victory over death, and to all those who believe, Easter offers the surprising promise of eternal life.
After all, there is no such thing as a boring Easter Sunday. Each Easter we are offered an enduring promise of a brand-spanking new and sparkling "window of divine surprise."
All we have to do is notice and remember.
