Easter: A Time for Friends, Family, Chocolate, or God?

Today is Easter Sunday, the celebrated day (for Christians) when Christ was risen from the dead to sit at the right hand of God the Father. It is also a time for family and friends, for fun and games, for egg hunts, for chocolate.
To unbelievers, a time for thinking about a new spring filled with new life in the form of baby chickens and bunnies. But why think of new life? Several reasons. First, the Spring brings with it the start of new life in the form of plants bursting into bloom, animals peeping out from hibernation, and other animals giving birth to more little creatures. Second, and more important, Christ has given us new life. But how many pagans think of that?

So here I am, listening to most of my family (extended and all) trying to re-construct the Easter story with small ziplock bags filled with symbols from the Bible: A cross, a sponge, two dice, a crown of thorns, etc. etc. But what is the real point? Of course we know what it should be: Christ, and what He did. However, most of the time, its just people having fun, trying to celebrate with the family or friends, eating a LOT.

I personally think that we should all just sit down with some vinegar and unleavened bread and watch Mel Gibson's "The Passion" until we're all crying.

After this, we should all eat, soberly, our dinner of ham. Then we can celebrate that Christ went through a lot more than just drinking some liquids that make you sick and then enduring a giant ham. We can celebrate that he died for us, and then we can celebrate the fact that he rose again, and showed Death what's what. For as it says in the amazing movie "Wit", Death only gets a comma.

"Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so,
For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Much pleasure: then from thee much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee do go,
Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.
Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell;
And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well
And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die."

-- John Donne

For Elijah (and an explanation)

First of all, I would like to say that in my post "feeling and thought, family and home" I didn't mean that I don't know my family at all. It's just that at times I wonder what family really is. That was the point of the post.

For Elijah:

Today you leave us,
Today your gone,
Today we must trust,
That you'll be fine.

We love you so much,
We'll miss you so much.

I wrote you a song,
It has no words,
No title to go along,
Except 'For Elijah.'

I love you so much,
I'll miss you so much.

It may seem sappy,
This whole poem and post,
But I hope it makes you happy,
We hope for that the most.

We hope you'll be happy,
We'll miss you so much.

I think the song is sad,
But I think it is beautiful,
I think you might get mad,
but still love it true and full.

I'm glad that your happy,
In your new home,
I'm glad you think this is sappy,
And you haven't changed your tone.

I'm glad that your happy,
I'll miss you anyway,
I love you my brother,
And I'll e-mail every day.

-Charity Tuuri

My Favorite Commmercials

These are two of my favorite commercials: One, the Berries and Cream Starburst ad. "Berries and cream, Berries and cream, I'm a little lad who loves berries and cream!" Two, the Dell laptop commercial featuring the song "The W.A.N.D." by The Flaming Lips.

Berries and Cream


Dell

Feeling and Thought, Family and Home.

My feelings change every moment. My emotions vary with the weather. But my thoughts seem to stay the same. I keep thinking the same things, even when the world goes topsy-turvy. Why is this? Mabye Einstein was right in saying, "Common sense is merely the deposit of prejudice laid down in the human mind before the age of 18." Or mabye he wasn't. I suppose no one really understands the mind. Either way, I've been thinking about home and family lately.

What is home? Is it the place where you grew up? Is it the place you live now? Or is it just a mindset? A subconscious feeling of comfort? I think it is your mindset. I know that I often say that I miss home... the place I grew up. But lately I've been feeling more and more at peace when I just sit down in our living room, eating dinner while watching a movie with my parents. Sometimes, however, I feel as though there's somewhere else for me... a home I've yet to find. Perhaps someday I will find it. But until then, I suppose I'll be at peace here.

Family. This is just like home. Sometimes, even if you have a brother/sister who you've lived with your whole life, you find someone outside of your blood-relations who seems to fit the catagory or impression of a brother/sister better. I know that at times I've felt as though I don't know my brothers at all, and that I feel more comfortable with some of my friends, who now feel like brothers or sisters to me. I sometimes feel as though I don't have much connection to my blood relatives, and I do have connection with those who are in no way related to me. But then, I hear about my brother getting a job in a different area. I hear that he'll be moving. Suddenly... I feel more distant from him than ever. And yet, I know. He is my brother. I cannot explain this... it was the reverse with my other brother. When he moved, got a job, I felt as though he was no longer my brother. I didn't see him, didn't talk to him. And now, he's still a brother to me, but I don't know him very well. It's the same with my sisters, they got married and moved. I don't know them very well. I don't know either of my brothers very well.

So what defines family? I know it doesn't matter if they're blood-relations. But I feel as though it should. I love my brothers, and my sisters. But sometimes I don't know how to talk to them, and I feel as though we're strangers. Therefore, I think that family is another subconscious mindset. An idea, a thought. A desperate desire to talk to them, to know what they do, to love them. A desire to be able to relate and connect with them. Sometimes you can't relate, sometimes you can't talk. And it is at those times when you feel as though they are not your family. It is at those times when you wonder what family is.