Taking a Deep Breath this Easter Week

This week finds me tentatively moving toward commiting to spending a week this summer at Warren Wilson College at The Swannanoa Gathering. Check out the website for The Swannanoa Gathering. It is exciting and a bit intimidating. If things work out as I hope, I will take Beginner Autoharp as one of my classes. The week is filled with music, music, and more music. On top of that there's contra dancing, story telling, shape note singing and lots more. For me, the difficulty is overcoming my hesitance to commiting to be in that place at that time for that experience. Don't ask me why. I do not know. But I think I need to take this step toward this new creative journey.

This is Holy Week. Easter is my favorite holiday. Knowing that Jesus came to this earth as a human baby is still a wonderful mystery. Knowing that he lived a truly human life with all its ups and down helps me to realize how much he loved all of us. He knows our joys and knows our sorrows. He laughed and wept. He had friends and saw friends die. He came to take our sins upon himself. He came to show us that we must love the unlovely. He came to show us that he helps those who cannot help themselves. He came to earth for the least among us. He came to fulfill the Law and to redeem us for Himself. I will go to my church for our Maundy Thursday communion service. I will think of the mystery of the enormous sacrifice Jesus gave for me. Friday and Saturday will bring that searching sadness within my heart knowing that Jesus suffered as a human for me and for each one of us. He chose it. He endured it. Even as he died he begged God to forgive those who killed him. How can I understand such a love as this? As I journey on toward Sunday, I seek to understand it. I look with joy toward Sunday!!


The earth is renewing itself. Gently the new leaves begin to appear. My Yellowbells are blooming!! It seems to me that New Year's Day should be the first day of spring. There is such promise!!