Easter reflections came to me on Easter Monday. The Holy Week break was superbly family-oriented, which meant time away from blogging, time away from work. There was also time for reflection, but most of the things I reflected on from Holy Thursday up till Easter Sunday were questions, questions and more questions. Ironically enough, it was when I sat back at my office desk this morning that the answers to my Holy Week questions started pouring in.
Sunset at Boracay. Great for pictures and pondering.
People look to the sunrise as a sign of a new beginning. I find new beginnings in sunsets. It’s that time of the day when I understand the things that went right and wrong during the day, acknowledge what I should be grateful for, and so move on during the evening to do what’s right, what’s good, what’s blissful.
You don’t have to wait for the next day to start anew.
Jesus, I believe in you and I receive you.
My Easter reflections include a lot of revived beginnings. There are some things I had started this year that put me on the path to having a more inspired life, but I strayed in some places. Work, as always, got in the way of personal fulfilment. Fatigue on weekends led to more time at home resting than actively bonding with the family.
Revive the path to helping and nurturing others. Aside from my family, I find much happiness in helping nurture others. This includes training and empowering others. Encouragement is one of my top spiritual gifts and I’d very much like to maximize it this year. (You can find out what your spiritual gifts are by answering this test.)
Strengthen my faith by sharing it with others. I look forward to morning car rides with my sister. On our way to work, I read a chapter out loud from The Purpose-Driven Life and we reflect on it together. She’s read it before, but is helping me with my journey. Right now I’m sharing my journey with her. Through this blog I’d like to share stories of my faith journey too… all in good time.
Build a family of love and compassion. During my baby shower in 2009, my best friend wished this for me: “I hope your son grows up to be compassionate.” More than smarts or strength, he said, growing in love and compassion is most valuable. I’d like to be more active in teaching my son just that. I see his compassion for family members everyday — snuggling against a family member he feels is in distress or just simply needs a hug, even kissing my booboo when I hurt myself. (When he accidentally elbowed me in the chin, he looked so troubled. He zoomed in on my chin, as if inspecting it, touched the place where I got hit and kissed my chin. I said, “Thank you, baby.” He replied, “Mommy is happy!” Aw, I love you, anak.) Compassion is best taught by example, so I’d like to take him out more and nurture him more.
Those are the three big things right now.
I hope you had a blessed Holy Week break! Do you have any stories or reflections to share? I invite you to share your Easter reflections. Let me know how I can help you with them too!
Happy Easter Monday!
Hi! I'm Toni Tiu,
and I've been blogging at
at Wifely Steps since 2003. This started as a blog to help newly weds adjust to married life. It has evolved into a home and parenting blog. I write about things close to my heart -- good eats, good reads, family, marriage, and the little things that make everyday happy.