Quips and Tips for Spiritual Seekers

Despite what you see in the stores, Easter isn’t about chocolate bunnies and Easter Cream Eggs! These meaningful ways to celebrate Easter with your family will help you create new Easter traditions and customs, or liven up your annual activities. 

Before the tips, a quip:

“For I remember it is Easter morn, and life and love and peace are all new born.” ~ Alice Freeman Palmer.

The most meaningful way to celebrate Easter is to absorb the meaning of Jesus Christ’s resurrection, which brings life, love, and peace. If you incorporate that knowledge into your Easter activities, then you’ll bring more meaning and spirituality to this holiday. For more Easter tips, read The Book of New Family Traditions: How to Create Great Rituals for Holidays & Everydays. When you read these six ways to make Easter special for you and your family, remember that what you do is less important than the attitude of your heart when you do it…

6 Meaningful Ways to Celebrate Easter With Your Family

1. Rediscover the meaning of Easter. Whether you believe in Jesus Christ’s resurrection or think it’s a myth, spend some time thinking about life, growth, and new beginnings. Talking with your family about letting go of old habits and creating new ones is a meaningful way to celebrate Easter. Or, consider rediscovering the meaning of Easter, and how your faith or beliefs have changed. Perhaps you could think about creating a more spiritual Easter with your family.

2. Explore new Easter customs – of different cultures. The Russians bake kulich as an Easter custom; the British make traditional English simnel cakes. Africans, Australians, and Aboriginals all have different customs at Eastertime. Get an Easter book from the library, or surf the Internet with your family, and pick an exotic Easter custom to explore on Good Friday or Easter Sunday. Maybe you’ll start celebrating Easter by exploring a different theme every year!

3. Create eco-friendly Easter crafts. To make both Easter and your family’s treatment of our planet more meaningful, explore organic Easter crafts and foods instead of buying the traditional Easter grass, plastic baskets, and cheap packaging. Many green living websites describe quick and easy ways to create natural egg dyes and make eco-friendly Easter crafts.

4. Enjoy an Easter escape with the family. Instead of staying home at Easter, consider getting away. Your trip doesn’t have to be for the whole weekend; even just a drive in the country or through a new part of town can change your perspective on life. Make your journey more meaningful by visiting a cemetery on Good Friday or a special church on Easter Sunday. If you and your spouse have different spiritual beliefs, consider increasing your spiritual connection by visiting each other’s houses of worship.

5. Volunteer over the Easter weekend. Serving food to homeless people or visiting people who can’t leave their homes can be a wonderful new custom for families. Explore volunteering options at food banks, Meals on Wheels, or the SPCA. Many cities have volunteer websites, which list both short and long-term volunteer needs. Volunteering at Easter can involve fun activities such as making crafts at a community or church event, which could be meaningful for the whole family.

6. Cook new Easter dinner recipes that involve the whole family. Celebrating Easter as a family should involve a delicious dinner! Spending time with your kids, spouse, parents or loved ones in the kitchen, baking Easter cookies or decorating eco-friendly Easter eggs is a great way to strengthen your family relationships. Pick a holiday recipe that you only make at Easter – perhaps chocolate Easter bunnies or melt-in-your-mouth scalloped potatoes – and give each family member a task. The idea is to make your time together meaningful, so make sure you cook and eat as a family!

If you have any questions or thoughts on these ways to celebrate Easter with your family, please comment below…