"Family traditions counter alienation and confusion. They help us define who we are; they provide something steady, reliable and safe in a confusing world.
-Susan Lieberman
I remember being a small girl and absolutely loving Easter. Waking up and being so excited to see what was in my Easter Basket that year! The chocolate bunnies were always my favorite! The four of us kids would then survey our goods in the basket and do the usual swap for the candy we wanted. Later that day we would head to our Nana and Papa's and have the "Big Easter Egg Hunt." There was always a "little kids" hunt in the front yard where there was candy and some dollar bills in those beautiful colored plastic eggs. I loved finding them and not being able to wait to see what was inside! It wasn't abnormal for me to open the egg first before I even found another one. (I still to this day lack focus) ;) The big event of the day was the adult easter egg hunt. This was the highlight! Imagine 15 (more/less) adults finding MONEY eggs in the front and back yard. And yes, it would often get physical! Some hunts have gone down in family history because of how hilarious people have been. My Aunt Dawn even jumped in the pool one year after an egg!
My cousin Danny and I are only 23 days apart and we will always remember that year that we "graduated" and were able to join the fun. It was like winning the lottery!! We were finally big kids at Nana's! I think we were around 11 and even though we didn't get many eggs that year, but it was a big milestone in our life.
The hunts continued and years later my little sister, brother and younger cousin were old enough for the money hunt and the little kid hunt in the front yard was no longer. Every year it has been the same since I can remember..... a tasty Easter lunch made by our amazing Nana followed by all of the adults going up stairs to hangout while our Papa hid the eggs all over the outside of their house. They have a beautiful large house with even bigger yards. We were like a bunch of small children, but we loved it! There would always be a fight on who was too far down on the stairs and may be cheating. If you could see the windows you were toast! The brown bags with our names on them were passed out and after about 30 minutes, let the games begin! It was like a cattle stampede down those stairs!
This year was different. When Chris and I arrived to my Nana and Papa's this year we were told there wouldn't be a hunt. No hunt? Was this a joke? Is the tradition actually over? Of course I didn't really say anything and no one put up a fight, but it was sad. With the passing of our sweet Uncle Eddie last year, my grandparents getting older and we were all having kids of our own... it was inevitable. I guess that is what makes it so sad. We did have a little kids hunt in the front yard for my niece and my cousin's son. Part of me ached because we didn't have a child there to join with them. I know we will someday soon.
Life is sometimes crazy because you do something with your family for so long you just assume it will keep going forever. It can't and won't. We keep getting older and nothing can ever really stay the same forever. New traditions will now begin.
Happy Easter to you all!!