Happy Easter, everyone! I hope you have a glorious day, and I hope the kids are not bouncing off the wall due to a sugar high.
Of course, we all know, or maybe you don’t know, but getting a sugar high from eating too many sweets is a myth. It is more likely you just get happy enjoying all the chocolate or plain sugar.
These days, because I don’t eat as much sugar as I used to, when I do, I feel yucky — not a medical term, but too much candy or chocolate doesn’t give me joy like it used to.
Since it’s been a rainy, chilly, damp month of March, either Easter egg hunts have been postponed to a dryer day or in the case of the City of Pittston, they just did a drive through candy pick up, just like they did during COVID. Even that day, the Easter Bunny got pretty wet.
My fondest memories of Easter involve my own Easter as a child and being a parent watching my two daughters enjoy the holiday.
When I was young, my parents didn’t hide eggs in order for us to find them to get our basket. My mom just grabbed a basket, and usually we had the same basket assigned to us forever. She would pack the basket with all kinds of chocolate and lay them on a bed of “grass” and then put the basket in colored cellophane.
When we woke up Easter morning, the baskets would just be sitting in the parlor waiting for our itchy hands to mow them down for chocolate treats.
I always gravitated to the Peeps, those colorful sugar coated pieces of marshmallow in the shape of a bunny rabbit. Man, I could pop those like pills in my heyday.
Bunnies used to be solid and as the industry grew longer in the tooth, they became hallow, unless your parents had a lot of money to buy solid bunnies.
Of course, the basket had not only chocolate bunnies, but also jelly beans, malted balls, egg-shaped malted balls, Milk Duds, and Peeps — lots of Peeps. I’d pop those Peeps in my mouth like they were … well, Peeps.
When I moved into the parent role, I loved preparing the baskets and I too would wrap the baskets in cellophane. No hiding eggs either for my two, they just woke up like Christmas Day and found their baskets.
Naturally, for my upbringing, my mother made sure my brother and I were dressed identical like we were twins even though we were 4½ years apart.
Was my mother the only one to do that to her non-twins?
There were two times a year we went clothes shopping, once before the school started and once for Easter. And as you can guess, we shopped for identical clothing.
My baby sister always had a new dress along with new shoes and a new purse.
The five of us all got ready for Easter church service at the same time, which was chaos with only one bathroom.
After church, we would find our way to visit the cemeteries to stop by our deceased relatives. Most times my parents would snap photos of us standing next to a tombstone. Yes, I know it’s crazy, but that’s what we did.
I feel traditions have fallen by the way side and only few families still carry on tradition.
This year, my two children will be elsewhere for Easter dinner and it’s a pity they won’t spend it with family. Now that I’m climbing the tree of life, who knows how many Easters I’ve have in me?
There are some families in Greater Pittston this Easter that won’t have a dinner with a relative who passed away this year.
This Easter, I’ll be thinking of Joan McAndrew and her large family who cherished her. Even though she was 93, it was hard to let go. She was the last of her Clifford siblings from West Avoca. She was a great person with a heart of gold.
I’ll think of Jimmy Deice’s family, who lost Jimmy this past week. He was a great guy, friend to all really and would do anything he could for you. He was a teacher, coach and very civic-minded. He’s a big loss in Greater Pittston.
I’ll think of John Fumanti’s family, in particular his mother Blanche and wife Gloria and daughter Dana.
And I will be thinking of Justine Marranca who passed away due to addiction. Justine was my daughter’s classmate and friend and her passing really hit home for me.
Andy Hergan was a guy with a great smile and my memories of him were his athletic abilities as a Warrior from Wyoming Area. He too has a large family and at 69-years of age, he should have had a lot more Easters left in him.
Before closing this Easter day, I want to congratulate longtime businessman Sandy Insalaco on being chosen the Titan of Industry Award recipient.
I’d also like to congratulate Mary Kroptavich on receiving the Jean Yates Award and Danny Argo on being the first recipient of the Lombardo Family Community of Service Award.
All three Greater Pittstonians will be honored this Friday, April 12 at separate ceremonies.
Quote of the Week
“Easter was when Hope in person surprised the whole world by coming forward from the future into the present.” – N.T. Wright
Thought of the Week
“We are told to let our light shine, and if it does, we won’t need to tell anybody it does. Lighthouses don’t fire cannons to call attention to their shining — they just shine.” — Dwight L. Moody
Bumper Sticker
“Easter is the soul’s first taste of spring.” — Richelle E. Goodrich
