Word-of-the-month: halcyon (adj., n.)

[Image credit: Arvind Balaraman]

Memories from our childhood may bring to mind special traditions shared with family and friends during the holiday season — a halcyon time of year.  Today, however, many of us are unsettled and filled with stress.  Financial concerns, travel hassles, foul or unpredictable weather, health issues, missing loved ones who may as well live on the other side of the world or those who have passed on — all of these conditions are examples of what may turn a hopefully peaceful, reflective time into just the opposite.  Halcyon, an adjective (pronounced halsēən), means denoting a period of time in the past that was idyllically happy and serene.  This is oftentimes best illustrated around the holidays, but could also denote family vacations or favorite pastimes.  Synonyms of halcyon include quiet, calm, placid, tranquil, still, untroubled and heavenly.  Used as a noun, a halcyon is a kingfisher (especially of the genus Halcyon) with brightly colored plumage.

May your holidays be the kind you look back on as being halcyon, healthy and memorable.

Discovering Easter in every day

[Image credit: Jeroen van Oostrom]

Easter spells out beauty, the rare beauty of new life.
~ S.D. Gordon

For some, Easter is a religious holiday, dressing up in new finery.  For others, it means family gatherings and egg hunts, baskets brimming with chocolates and jelly beans, or an all-you-can-eat brunch after church.  In my home, it’s a little bit of everything.  For me, personally, it’s mostly about what S.D. Gordon talks about in the above quote: new life.  Every day we have the opportunity to celebrate this concept, because each morning that we’re afforded the rare opportunity to open our eyes to the risen sun, we have a chance to go after our chocolate-covered or caramel-coated dreams and be the person we were meant to be.  Yes, sometimes there’s a bad egg in the bunch.  But that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate something as simple as the beauty of another new day to love and be loved — to make a difference in someone else’s life.  Let’s start by having a Happy Easter and go from there.

What is your most memorable Easter tradition?