what really happens

I understand Easter is a religious holiday for many. This post is not about religion – I don’t talk about that on my blog, at least not yet. I started thinking about the holiday and how it happens every year and how the same thing, for most people, happens every year. Some people may change where they hide the eggs or what they hide in them, but every year you are the hider or seeker of eggs – one year I was both. Recently, there have been multiple articles from many states citing that egg hunts have been cancelled due to aggressive parents. Should we not evaluate what type of society we are becoming when we turn a religious holiday, sometimes three-day weekend, into a greedy brawl to make sure that your kid in diapers gets more eggs than the seven-year old with years of practice?

There is something else I don’t understand about this holiday – its participants. Some of them don’t care a hoot about Jesus, but God forbid their kid doesn’t get a basket full of eggs stuffed with candy and the opportunity to win a dollar. To me this seems rude, but this is the American way. The Islam religion has the right to pray five times a day and I’m ok with that – it’s their thing and I’m sure they have to take off work for their holidays. People that want to celebrate holidays and get time off should have to register their faith or the calendar they follow. For those without as many holidays they can be compensated to have an equal amount of days off, but on a varying schedule. Why should people be allowed the holiday if they don’t have to follow the rest of the religion?

Jesus only rose out of the grave once, but then I suppose he was only born once too and we all celebrate our births every year – but are we not celebrating the fact that we are still alive? I know Easter and Christmas are traditions of stress, credit card debt, greed, angry shoppers, overeating, and spirit and non-such, but what makes people want to repeat the same thing every year? Have we lost that much sense of our creativity? Put up the same lights – increase electric bill, buy crap advertised on TV – expensive cable and more useless materials, eat same glutinous foods in large amounts – spend lots of money on diet pills. This to me is a psychotic idea and I am glad that I am now less crazy.

what might happen when pigs can fly

Instead of buying kids a bunch of stuff that they won’t appreciate and will soon break or lose, why not leave them at Grandma’s house and do something different. For Easter you could hike a local mountain or have lunch with a local homeless person – they love hot sandwiches! Days off from work should be about a change in routine; not a change in the channel or the color of the decorations. Why not seek out in life what it is you really want? How many parents regret having kids, sometimes for a day and sometimes for years, because they believe they lost out on their dreams?

Parents can’t blame their kids for ruining their youth or their lives. I’ve known parents with special needs kids that are able to play in a local band or write a bestselling novel. Some are still able to leave their kids with Grandma while they take that trip to Madrid that they have dreamt of for years. I understand some people will not have the blessing of family as free sitter or the paycheck to afford flying to Spain, but they should be able to find joy in the smaller things in life – sometimes they can even bring their kids along. More of a rant than I was expecting, but I had fun today and it had nothing to do with bunnies pooping out eggs – that doesn’t even make sense, why not a chicken or a fish – Jesus liked fish and at least they lay eggs.

Note: Religion and media should be kept separate. If you go to church twice a year and hunt for eggs on Easter than Happy Easter to you. If you have a holiday that takes place in December than you should be able to celebrate it – not just the Holidays. Though I do suppose it is kind to be thankful for other people’s holidays; if they didn’t have any people might have to get random days off from work and have no idea how to celebrate.

* Pictures from Google