Holy Week, Part 1

 

     Just a quick post, because it's so busy around here at the moment!  It's Holy Week, and it's all go around here.  About 9 years ago now I started thinking hard about how we could celebrate Easter more meaningfully.  Some traditions have now evolved in the Hamilton-Bleakley household, but every year I'm a bit daunted by the prospect of pulling it off.  So I try to take it slowly, and thoughtfully, trying not to take on too much.  But, honestly, there is a lot going on.  Just take it day by day ...

     Before Holy Week, we do a little Easter tree.  We make paper Easter eggs to hang on the tree.  This year, I bought a little olive tree as our Easter tree.  Since Jesus suffered for our sins in the Garden of Gethsemane, which was a garden of olive trees, I couldn't think of anything more appropriate:

 

     So, during Holy Week we do things to remind ourselves of the last week of Jesus' life.  On Palm Sunday, we read and discuss the account of Jesus's triumphant entry into Jerusalem.  We also get out a stack of illustrations which I have detailing the events leading up to the crucifixion, and put them up in chronological order on the wall.

     On Monday, we read the account of Jesus cleansing the temple, and discuss how that can apply to our lives.  If Jesus came to our house, what would He want to cleanse?  This year the kids decided He would cleanse the criticizing and the tattle-telling that has been happening as of late.

     On Tuesday, we talk about some of the parables that Jesus taught during this week.  This year we talked about his criticisms of the scribes and Pharisees, who 'strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel'.  I asked the kids what they thought that meant, and Eleanor said, 'Umm, they have small eyes but big mouths?'  We also had some friends over this year to make Easter crafts.  We made - well, tried to make - oil lamps out of clay, from the parable of the 10 virgins.  

 

 

 

We also made homemade marshmallow eggs and decorated them.

 

 

 

 

     On Wednesday, there is more discussion of the parables.  This year we also started our Easter craft.  We are making a model of Golgotha, the Garden tomb, and the Garden of Gethsemane.  We looked up pictures on the internet of Golgotha and the tomb, and the kids got really excited about trying to replicate them.  We just use newspaper, paper mache made of flour and water, and rocks.  Super cheap and, because I am not a perfectionist when it comes to crafts, easy.  

 

 

     Now it's Thursday, and things are really speeding up.  We have a Passover meal tonight which I have to prepare for today, and lots of preparations for Good Friday and the Easter weekend.  Easter walk, dying eggs, making hot cross buns ... it's all happening.  Wish me luck.