Easter Monday Blues

For several hundred years until the second half of the last century, the Monday after Easter was celebrated as a holiday in its own right. While Easter Sunday was primarily a religious festival and immediate families gathered together to share a common meal, the following day was celebrated with extended families or neighbors. In many places, the church festival which hit its highest notes on Easter Sunday spilled over into Monday. As a result, many local parishes provided an additional worship opportunity on Easter Monday.

In the 21st century, we would be hard pressed to find a church holding a worship service or extended families gathering for a Monday meal. I do remember during my elementary school days that our school district would commonly extend the Easter break to include Easter Monday. Those were the days when it was rare for public schools to recess for a week long "spring break". Instead, what I recall was a long Easter weekend with days off including Thursday through Monday.

Since the day following Easter carries no significance for a majority of the world's population, what we find on Easter Monday is a spirit of depression. Like a let down following a major high, the festivities of this spring holiday are over. The magical Easter bunny has made his appearance at any number of homes, brightly colored new outfits were shown off, early morning breakfasts, brunches and ham dinners were the order of the day. Yesterday, lilies and tulips in a variety of brilliant hues were the hottest flowers in town.

Today's fare calls for leftovers, putting away the Easter decorations, perhaps throwing out the leftover candy to prevent yet another sugar rush, putting away the Easter outfits in the far reaches of the closet and deciding what to do with all those Easter lilies.

More often than not, following a major holiday, it is common for individuals to be struck with "the blues". Perhaps yesterday's family gathering wasn' quite what we expected. Maybe we didn't attend because our family does not accept who we are or we are the ones no longer comfortable around them. The busyness of celebrating a perfect holiday tends to overshadow the joy and meaning of the day itself.

What a pleasure it must have been for centuries to extend the festivities of Easter an extra day! While it is not practical or possible to return to an earlier time, it may be helpful for all of us to gain an historical perspective. That perspective may be just what we need to chase away the "Easter Monday blues."

~ DB Turnmire