Today is a miracle. The sky is breathtakingly blue. The sunlight is so bright I had to squint my eyes even in the kitchen. It isn’t warm, in the mid 40’s, but I went without my jacket while doing errands. The world is feeling spring-like and so am I.

The grape hyacinths have bloomed. One is a light purple while the other is a dark purple. They and the dafs bring color to the front garden. I love these early bursts of spring.

Before Easter, we always colored eggs. My mother used to buy the Paas kits. We’d sit at the kitchen table with glasses filled with different colored water in front of us. We’d use a metal holder to dip the eggs into the glasses. The younger I was the less patient I was so the eggs only got lightly colored. On Easter mornings we’d sometimes have an Easter egg hunt. Afterwards, my mother used to make egg salad so the eggs wouldn’t go to waste.

I never counted down to the Easter Bunny’s visit the way I did for Santa’s. I always sort of knew what to expect from the Easter Bunny. My basket was woven wicker and colorful. Green grass covered the bottom. If I put chocolate I’d tasted back into the basket the grass always stuck to it. The centerpiece of my basket was always the chocolate rabbit. It stood tall. The rabbit was hollow. Around its feet were jelly beans, hard colored eggs with hard white filling, wrapped chocolates and Peeps. The Easter Bunny always added gifts like an Easter coloring book and crayons or a stuffed animal or small toys. My basket was always filled.

I don’t have a chocolate rabbit, but I have Peeps exposed to the air and hardening. I have a few Reese’s peanut butter eggs in the freezer. I think the peanut butter eggs taste better than the peanut butter cups. I have my Easter dinner, the traditional ham, mashed potatoes and green beans. I am ready for Easter.