Maybe Easter parallels Christmas in that the expectations of our hearts do not match the celebration of these events. This seems truer at Christmas -- for the birth of Jesus gets buried under the pre-occupations and preparations for decorations, cards, meals, parties, and gifts. I sense Easter meaning slips through our fingers and out of our hearts, not so much because of new, spring outfits or egg hunts for children and the other delights we share in coming together as families, friends, and communities. Perhaps the reasons are closer to the realities that bring about Easter meaning.

The reality of the Resurrection is marvelous news! We rely on it; our trust in God is founded on it. Love conquers death! Love breaks the bonds of sin and evil. Love heals all wounds. Love gives life unto life eternal, a wondrous package, full of the images of joy unending!

These realities are rooted in what took place before; it is hard for us to linger on those events, much less experience them! How perfectly normal and natural. Who wants to dwell in and on our frailty, our disappointments, our failures, our hurts, and the brokenness of our lives when seen through the prism of relating to each other and all others?

I do believe we need to be willing to enter into and deal with these daily experiences of life with others, as well as with life within our own minds and hearts, before we can begin to walk, hand in hand, with Jesus to Easter glory! It happens when we enter into our own private, personal passion and the many times we die and rise, wound and heal, on an almost daily basis. No glory without the cross; no fulfillment in life without the demands, sacrifices and generosities of love expressed in the less than romantic ways of forgiveness, healing, reconciliation, compassion, and the wonders of life-restoring and life-giving that love achieves.