Easter Song

Happy Easter!  As I was lying in bed last night, after a full day of preparations and mass and company and so many gleeful children running around until past their bedtimes, I was thinking about the day, wondering if every guest felt welcomed, and if maybe the lamb wasn't a bit underdone (it was.  My meat thermometer tricked me!), and if only I could have kept the twins in their pretty Easter dresses for a little bit longer (they changed into their ragtag favorites about five minutes after getting home from mass).  You know, just the typical awareness of all of the imperfections of this boisterous family life we have embraced.  And I caught myself a minute into this train of thought, and laughed at my own ridiculousness, because isn't the ultimate lesson of the Lenten season that God can do something beautiful from our most humble efforts?  Wow, there is such comfort in that, especially when even our best efforts are kind of messy.

We were blessed with an incredibly present Triduum, where we not only went to church, but were able to go without some of the littler kiddos, meaning that we could participate and focus in a way that is truly special.  And I think that for all of us, but especially Ben, in this first Easter season after having lost his brother, there is healing in liturgy of the Triduum.  Because in taking us through the last days and death of Jesus, all the way to the miracle of his Resurrection, it is also taking us through what God has promised for us.  I am thankful for all of it, and thankful that the Church freely gives us this beauty and meaning.  I had my feet washed on Holy Thursday for the first time in my life (along with my sweet eldest daughter Zosia).  Hugo punctuated the utter silence on Good Friday after the readers  loudly exclaimed "Crucify him!  Crucify him!" by helpfully announcing "That was loud!"  And the twins somehow came to believe that a little girl wearing bunny ears in mass on Easter morning was the Easter bunny, and they tried to hug her.  And Josephine slept through just about every minute of it.  And then we hung out with friends and the full compliment of my West Coast family on Easter.  It was all pretty great.

I hope you had a beautiful Easter, too, and will feel the joy of the Easter season throughout the entire year.  This song was my brother in law's favorite, and he used to blast it through his house on Easter morning.  He's risen, halleluja. 

Fairy Houses, Reading, and Baby Love

::We're getting the house slowly ready for the big Easter gathering we're hosting over the weekend, and it makes me so cheerful to catch a glimpse of flowers as I'm going about my tidying.  As the Easter card my inlaws just sent reads, "The new life that surrounds us in spring is a beautiful reminder of the new life we've been given because Christ lives."  

::We have taught all of our kids how to read using this book when they're four or so, and it's always magical to watch them suddenly "get it" and start reading more fluently.  Ben and I have been competing over who gets to give Hugo his reading lesson in the evening.  I am already looking forward to teaching the twins: at least we'll each have a pupil!

::Zosia and her friends put together a little song and dance number for their school's talent show, which made us all so proud!  It's not easy to get up in front of an auditorium full of people, let alone do it with grace and poise and smile on your face.  It's so fun to watch each of our children develop into unique individuals, pursuing their own interests and talents.  As I kid I had some awful stage fright, which I truly think I've only fully gotten over as an adult: I think doing a talent show like that would have been my worst nightmare.  But there she was, confident and happy, in front of a room of friends and their parents.

Watching Zosia up there, we realized that over the past six months, our kids have developed close friendships with some pretty great kids. I remember my sister in law, who has spent most of her adult life as an air force wife, moving more frequently than I can wrap my mind around, once said that it takes about six months to feel settled in somewhere.  And of course she's right.  :-)

::I can't believe that just over two months ago, we hadn't met Josephine yet.  It feels like she is right in the middle of our family, acting as entertainment, antidote to boredom, and superlative winner in most categories according to her siblings.  To me, a new baby is the ultimate teacher of pure love. Because, if you think about it, Josephine's siblings shouldn't boundlessly adore her: they should resent her (which all of those parenting books tell you they will!  Six kids later and we're still waiting on that one).  I mean, here she is taking up attention, and needing new diapers and all.  But they absolutely adore her and she brings out their kindness, creativity, and gentleness in entirely new ways for no good reason, other than love.  And likewise, we should probably be pretty grumpy about the fact that we are getting up at night, or jiggling a baby and what have you, but there is nothing that could make us happier.  Babies, you guys!

:: We are right in the middle of a "fairy house" craze, which means that I find little shrines all over the house containing a mix of random toys, natural elements, food waste, and in this one, a nativity icon.   They are so incredibly creative, I leave them up for as long as I can bear it before reclaiming that bit of countertop (or tabletop, or lawn, or bathtub).  Clearly, if we don't yet, we will soon have a lot of fairies living in our house.

May you have a blessed Holy Week!  Our feet are going to be so clean in an hour or two.

A Blessed Day

Saturday was Zosia's First Holy Communion.  It all started in the morning, when the two of us went on a special date to get her ears pierced (which those of you with daughters probably know is a major event).  Two pearl earrings later, Zosia put on her dress, I curled her hair, and my dad brought by a wreath for her to wear-- a traditional Polish custom on the day of your First Communion.  

The mass was beautiful: each child played a special role in the mass, whether bringing in the altar linens, or presenting the gifts, or reading the Gospel, or reading the prayers of the faithful.  I know that Zosia felt incredibly loved to be surrounded by both sets of her grandparents, a beloved great aunt, her Aunt Irene, cousin Grace, and her own little family.  And I know that she understands the incredible truth of the Eucharist: that Jesus came to be with us, not just once in history, but always, whenever we need him, just as he promised us.  It is a beautiful thing, and I am so thankful that it is something that I can now share with her through the mass.

We went out for lunch afterwards, on a perfectly beautiful spring day.  And then we came home and all the kids ran around the yard like crazy (after having changed out of the First Communion dress, thankyouverymuch), because that is always a perfectly appropriate activity.  But all fun aside, the thing I will carry with me from this sacred day is a deep gratitude for God's grace and love.  I can still feel it, all these thousands of years later, and I pray that my intelligent, beautiful and kind Zosia will always feel it, too.

Sabbath

We've been thinking about what it means to make Sunday a day of rest.  The idea of rest is very appealing when you are chasing after nine month twins, I'll give you that. But in a larger sense, setting aside Sunday as a day of rest gives a beautiful rhythm to the week.  An order.  And doesn't it make sense that God created it to be just so, presenting us with this gift of sabbath, knowing that we, just like God, need rest.

We have been taking small steps to set Sunday aside.  The easy part is spending time together.  We have always been a family that prioritizes family time over a lot of other good things: sports, hobbies, exciting adventures, even time with friends or at organized church activities.  It might be going for a walk, a bike ride, reading together or playing a game, but more often it's just embarking upon our own little projects and games in one another's company.  I love the picture above, which has everyone at the table doing different things: Ben is feeding babies, Zosia is helping Lily with homework, and Hugo, not pictured, is across the table peeling labels off of fruit (awesome way to keep a three year old occupied for thirty minutes!).  It's a great example of what I mean about being together but embarking upon our own projects.  

The tricky part is making our time together restful for everyone, especially as two adults who have five little children in their charge!  Fun is the easy part, restful is harder.  This past Sunday, late in the afternoon, I realized I had not gotten off of my feet yet that day.  And I hadn't really been doing anything aside from the regular day-to-day stuff of having a big family (getting kids dressed for church, feeding little people lunch, going to pick out a few pumpkins and mums at the garden center)!  I had made sure to pick out a simple dinner I could get started in the morning, and tried to get ahead on housework during the week.  Ben swooped in and gave me time for a fifteen minute catnap, which always seems to do the trick, and that gave me a feeling of rest amid activity.  

But here's the thing: I know that it is possible to actually rest, in a kick up your heels sort of way.  I did it when I was pregnant with the twins (just this time last year, come to think of it).  But making the decision to rest in a setting that has a lot going on, whether it's two members of a couple pursuing demanding careers, families where both parents are working (I don't know how you do it, guys!), a single parent, or a bustling family just like ours, does mean letting go of things being "just so," and for our current stage in life, a little extra planning.  It also means saying no to a great many things, which is hard!

I am hoping that with time, our small efforts will start to shift the way that things feel.  I would love to find a sense of peace and order at whatever stage of life we might find ourselves, and I really do believe that taking a sabbath is one of the keys.  

Have any of you tried or succeeded in making Sunday a day of rest?  What does it look like for you?