The last days of March were just what I expected. We awoke Monday morning to find snow on the ground. It wasn’t much – just enough to disgust me. It melted away by midday and the next two days were warmer. But then April, the cruelest month, arrived and tried to fool us into thinking winter had returned. We awoke on the first to find two inches of wet snow plastered on everything. By the end of the day most of it had melted, but that night it snowed again. Good Friday morning looked more like Christmas morning. The snow buried my crocuses and iris reticulata at their peak and left them sad and bedraggled. The other flowers – the hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils – were not up enough to be damaged.
 |
| Monday morning. |
 |
| April 1st. |
 |
| April 2nd. |
 |
| Crocuses before. |
 |
| Crocuses after. |
On Thursday afternoon Miriam, Rachel, and the girls arrived. The energy level in the house immediately jumped and remains a high level. There is a lot of playing with dolls, horses, blowing bubbles, and dress-up clothes. With Florence walking and exploring everything, we have to keep the stairs blocked at the top and bottom. She is learning to imitate sounds and likes to high five. She is really adorable. Hazel, June, and Mabel help me with the chores every day. Miriam got a metal detector for Christmas and now that the weather is better, going metal detecting has become a big activity. Most of the things they find are old nails and other long buried trash, but they did find a Civil War buckle over by the Blake house. On Friday evening and Saturday morning the three older girls helped Grandma, Miriam, and Hannah make peanut butter and coconut chocolate dipped Easter eggs. When the weather finally started to warm a little yesterday, we had an Easter egg hunt outdoors. Last night they colored Easter eggs. This morning they had a quick search for their Easter baskets. There is a lot of candy circulating in the house.
 |
| Blowing bubbles. |
 |
| The Civil War buckle they found. |
 |
| Making coconut eggs. |
 |
| Getting ready for an Easter egg hunt. |
 |
| Hunting for eggs in the orchard. |
 |
| Dying eggs. |
As Easter approached last week, I kept my personal tradition of celebrating with music. I love Christmas music, but I love Easter music even more. Where the religious nature of Christmas has been heavily diluted by other secular traditions, for me Easter is a purer, holier holiday. Yes, it does have the pagan bunnies and eggs and candy, but they are superficial and insignificant, at least to me. Easter is about Christ and, for me, the celebration centers on the glorious and moving music that tells the story. I have my favorite works that express the range of emotions that come with Holy Week, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday.
During the week I listened to a work I have only recently included in my Easter observance, Lamb of God, by Rob Gardner. It is a dramatic musical portrayal of the last days of Christ’s mortal ministry beginning with the raising of Lazarus, to the arrest and crucifixion, and finally to His resurrection. It is told from the perspective of the apostles Peter, John, and Thomas, Mary and Martha of Bethany, Mary Magdalene, and Jesus’ mother Mary. The musical style reminds me of Les Misérables.
On Good Friday I listened, as I always do, to Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, perhaps my favorite work by my favorite composer. It tells the story of Christ’s suffering in Gethsemane, His betrayal, trial, crucifixion, and entombment as found in chapters 26 and 27 of the Gospel of Matthew. Interspersed with the scriptural narrative are chorales and arias. It is a magnificent work. One of my favorite parts is the alto aria, Erbarme dich, mein Gott (Have mercy, my God) which comes immediately after Peter’s triple denial of Jesus.
Erbarme dich, mein Gott, um meiner Zähren willen! My God, have mercy for my tears.
Schaue hier, Herz und Auge weint vor dir bitterlich. Look here! Heart and eyes weep bitterly for you.
Here is a clip of it:
And I especially love the bass aria Mache dich mein Herze rein (Make yourself pure, my heart) which is sung at the point where they are preparing to place the body of Jesus in the tomb.
Mache dich, mein Herze, rein, Make thyself pure, my heart,
ich will Jesum selbst begraben. I will bury Jesus myself.
Denn er soll nunmehr in mir For he shall have his sweet peace
für und für seine süße Ruhe haben. for ever in me.
Welt, geh aus, laß Jesum ein! World, go out, let Jesus in!
Here is a clip of it:
Here is a link to full performance of the St. Matthew Passion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwVW1ttVhuQ&t=7364s
This morning I began the day with Vaughn Williams’ lovely setting of the poem Easter by George Herbert (1593-1633):
Rise, heart, thy lord is risen. Sing his praise
Without delays,
Who takes thee by the hand, that thou likewise
With him may'st rise:
That, as his death calcined thee to dust,
His life may make thee gold, and, much more, just.
Awake, my lute, and struggle for thy part
With all thy art,
The cross taught all wood to resound his name
Who bore the same.
His stretched sinews taught all strings what key
Is best to celebrate this most high day.
Consort, both heart and lute, and twist a song
Pleasant and long;
Or, since all music is but three parts vied
And multiplied
Oh let thy blessed Spirit bear a part,
And make up our defects with his sweet art.
From there I moved on to Part II and III of Handel’s Messiah. I love all of this music so much. In Part II, I especially love the alto aria, “He was despised and rejected of men,” and the choruses, “Surely He hath bourne our griefs and carried our sorrows,” and “And with His striped we are healed.” In Part III, I love the tender soprano aria, “I know that my Redeemer liveth.” And the glorious bass aria, “The trumpet shall sound” gives me goose bumps every time I hear it.
“Behold, I tell you a mystery; We shall not all asleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).
Here is a clip of it:
Here is link to a full performance of Messiah:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlR9AAYMa3A&t=7455s
Because this is General Conference weekend, we didn’t go to church. Instead we watched and will watch broadcast sessions – three yesterday, one today at noon, and the last later this afternoon. That means we did not get to sing two of my favorite hymns, Christ the Lord is Risen Today and He Is Risen at church. It wouldn’t have mattered even if we went to church anyway as we are still not allowed to sing at church. So I listened to the Tabernacle Choir sing those great hymns this morning.
Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once he died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia!
Our feast was delicious. With Rachel and her girls here, and the Shilligs, we filled the dining room table with family and food. We had our traditional meal of ham, funeral potatoes, zesty carrots, pickled eggs, rolls, and fruit salad. After the final session this afternoon we will have dessert – a pound cake, chocolate Easter eggs, and other goodies.
 |
| Our Easter feast. |
 |
| Dessert later. |
General Conference has been all that I hoped it would be so far – inspiring, comforting, and reassuring. The words of prophets, apostles, and other church leaders have inspired me to try harder to do right and be good, to appreciate the blessings Heavenly Father gives me, and to strive more earnestly to follow His Son. They have comforted and reassured me that, no matter what happens in the world, ultimately Christ and His righteousness will triumph.
Rachel and her girls will leave to go home on Tuesday. If all goes as planned, we will also leave on Tuesday to spend a week in Florida. Stacey’s boss, who is 96, is going to visit his sister, who is 93. Stacey, as his care giver, has to go along, and I, as her husband, have been invited to go with her. Miriam and Hannah are going too. I’m looking forward to it, but I’m also a bit apprehensive about going. My garden is underway now and I don’t like to leave it at such a crucial stage. I have shipments of trees and vines that, after several delays, are due to arrive while I am gone. I have ten trays of seedlings I’ve been tending. If something goes wrong while I’m away, all my plans and work so far could be undone. And there are the chickens to tend to, too. Fortunately, our home, my flock, and my plants will not be neglected, Kurt and Julie are here and they will keep things going. So my next Journal will be late. I won’t write again until we get back on the 14th. Then I will tell you all about our adventure down south.
