this past weekend was easter, of course, but i've always preferred good friday. i love the tenebrae (sp?) service, i love the candles and the lights going out one by one, the somber music, the drama of the drum at the end and the respectful leaving in silence. all marks of a good show. (the theater major in me loves good drama)

in my defense, i also love the service of lessons and carols which has the same level of drama but is much cheerier. also in my defense, this could be because i'm part guatemalan catholic and they love their dramatic services - particularly during easter. (do a google image search for "easter antigua" and take a look at some of that)

luckily for me, i happen to work in a mostly hispanic catholic community and they take good friday and easter very seriously, too. someone dresses up as jesus and carries a cross and people walk for blocks behind him singing.

this year, we got to go up on the roof to watch as thousands of people singing rounded the corner by the library and headed to church.


maybe they didn't have the gorgeous sand and flower carpets (seriously, google it), but i believe it's no less impressive. it's about doing the best you can with what you've got and keeping your cultural traditions alive even in a community that's thousands of miles away from home.