Happy Easter

Easter Greetings to all my bloggy friends. I am now safely back home in Jersey City. I start back to work tomorrow. I had a wonderful 10 days away, the first week at west coast groovy sister hq in Bellevue, Washington and the last few days at St Walburga Monastery in Elizabeth, NJ where I joined one of my fellow novices for a Holy Week Retreat.

The liturgy at the monastery was wonderful for Triduum. This morning I was invited to read at liturgy and read this reading from St Paul's Letter to the Corinthians:

Brothers and sisters:
Do you not know that a little yeast leavens all the dough?
Clear out the old yeast,
so that you may become a fresh batch of dough,
inasmuch as you are unleavened.
For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed.
Therefore, let us celebrate the feast,
not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness,
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

I love this imagery, although personally, I have a bad history with yeast. I love to bake, but have yet to master any recipes that include yeast, with the exception of bagels. My theory is that the yeast, as a living organism, can sense my fear. Yes, dear friends, I am afraid of yeast. I last tried to make a yeast bread two Christmases ago. It was an utter disaster.

Perhaps I should take lesson from the women at the tomb, who were fearful yet overjoyed. Given my history with yeast (and this can be extrapolated to a general life lesson), I will most likely have some fear as I forge ahead and try new things. But just because I'm afraid, doesn't mean that I can't be overjoyed as well, and perhaps the joy will balance out the fear. It's a thought!

Well, those are my random thoughts this Easter sunday afternoon. Hope all is well in your respective necks of the woods! I should be back to more regular posting over the next few days ....

Peace,
Susan