Flashback Friday

The older I get, the more I realize that Easter and other holidays aren't such a big deal as they were when I was a kid.  Before we go any further in this Flashback, let me clarify something - I'm talking about the traditions surrounding Easter, not the actual holiday.  Easter is the basis for Christianity; today we reflected on the Crucifixion, and Sunday morning we will celebrate the Resurrection.  But for a few minutes, let me reminisce about some events surrounding Easter.

First and foremost, when I was a kid Easter Sunday was the day that people wore a new spring outfit to church.  I remember some old school women even wearing hats.  Some years it might not have been a new complete outfit, but you can rest assured at least one item in the ensamble was new.  My Grandma would always joke about the old wives tale of how an old crow would poop on you if you didn't have on something new.  On years when I didn't have a new outfit specifically just for Easter Sunday, Grandma would always make sure that I had some new socks or stockings in my Easter basket so I would have on something new.  Today, it's no big deal.  Sure, we'll see some ladies at church Sunday morning with hats, and some people will be all decked out, but you'll also see people like us who will wear our normal Sunday church clothes.  It's not that we don't care what we look like; on the contrary.  It's just that having a new outfit for Easter Sunday isn't a priority for us. 

One thing I'm happy to say is still a priority for my family is the Easter cake.  Back in the day, Grandma would make the same cake every Easter: a white cake with white icing, and with white coconut covering the top and some jelly beans stuck on the top of the cake.  I know that my Grandma loved me probably more than any other person on this earth has ever loved me, but she knew I hated coconut and yet every year she would make the coconut-covered cake at Easter.  I'd try to scrape off as much coconut as I could with my fork but I could still taste it.  Today, Mom gets to pick the official Easter cake, and this year, she chose a chocolate cake with chocolate icing, both made with Splenda so she can eat some of it.