Spring is a time of renewal and rebirth. As the snow melts (or doesn’t, given the amount still on the ground at the time of this writing), the muddy ground dries, leading to blooming annuals and soil ripe for planting gardens and flowers. Leaves grow, decorating bare trees, showing signs of life. The days get longer and temperatures warm, giving bones a rest from the frigid chill.
It is fitting that Spring holidays mirror new life. While some have religious origins (or pagan origins that more recent religions borrowed from), they all serve as a reminder of brightness and beauty.
Easter is the greatest zombie story ever told (with Return of the Living Dead being a close second). Jesus had a gathering with his Jewish disciples for a final Passover meal. (It’s a widespread myth that it was a Seder, which was not invented until many years later.) He gave them bread and wine, telling them that they are his body and blood, respectively, and predicted one would betray him. He was captured, found guilty of sedition and left to die on a Crucifix. His tomb was sealed but found empty three days later, validating his divinity and offering eternal life to those who followed his teachings. Bunnies and colored eggs got involved somewhere through the centuries, making for a much tastier treat than wine and communion wafers.
Judaism has its own celebratory holiday during the Spring. Passover is steeped in tradition, commemorating the Israelites being freed from slavery in Egypt. The Book of Exodus tells the story of God telling Moses to command his followers to mark their doorframes with slain lambs’ blood and giving instructions on how to consume the lamb that night. The bloodstained doorframes would show the Angel of Death to “pass over” these homes when bringing about the tenth plague and smiting all of Egypt’s firstborn. It was this tenth plague that finally led the Pharaoh to permit the Israelites to leave.
Passover is celebrated over eight days and can take up to a month to get fully prepared. It starts with the removal of all leavened products and a full, deep cleaning of the home to ensure all “chametz” has been completely removed from the premises (every last crumb). Matzoh is substituted for chametz during Passover meals and many processed foods are to be avoided. The Passover Seder, a multi-step ritual that is held on the first one or two nights, tells the story of Exodus.
Growing up, Easter seemed like a watered-down Christmas with better candy — hard to beat Cadbury Eggs. Good Friday was always a day off from school, which was usually spent painting eggs before quickly getting bored, complaining that my fingers were different colors and trying to hide to avoid having to do any sort of cleaning up. We’d wake up Easter Sunday and run to the living room to see what the Easter Bunny brought; my sister swears that she saw the Easter Bunny one year. We would then either prepare for family dinner at our house to go to my aunt’s or grandmother’s house. My Italian family prepared a dinner that consisted of ham (one of my favorite memories is of my dog not knowing what to do with herself while smelling ham cooking in the oven for the first time), tons of sides and more desserts than table. There are still egg hunts to this day, due to our family ages being spread far enough apart that there is always at least one child with a basket ready.
While there are many differences between the holidays, Easter and Passover both revolve around family gatherings. In 2026, Easter is April 5 and Passover runs from sundown April 1 to sundown April 9. Both have a deeper meaning and importance to those of faith, but family is still at the center. Each family is made up differently and they celebrate in their own unique way, but these serve as reasons to get together with loved ones and (hopefully) make some lasting memories (for good reasons).
Colored eggs and the Cadbury Bunny and the pastel colors associated with rebirth coincide with the fact that the darkness of winter is over and life is about to blossom everywhere. Everything feels fresh, and the renewal is motivating. It feels like a great time to beautify the outside of the home.
Earth Day has been promoting the environment every April 22 since 1970. Wisconsin Junior Senator Gaylord Nelson wanted to do something about the abundance of pollution and collapsing environment that was having a negative impact on public health. He recruited activist Denis Hayes to promote “green” awareness events across the country and gained unified support from the two main political parties, rich, poor, farmers, business leaders, activists and labor leaders. This led to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by the end of 1970 and the passage of numerous environmental laws.
Earth Day has since gone global, with over a billion people participating in actions and events throughout the world. Earth Day is the planet’s largest annual civic event and helped launch the modern environmental movement, which now may be at risk thanks to a tweet or an order signed by an executive pen.
The fitting theme to Earth Day 2026 is “Our Power, Our Planet,” and people are encouraged to stand together to defend those environmental protections that are now under attack and at risk. Check local listings for events or take the initiative to set up your own and register it on the Earth Day website (earthday.org).
Nothing says birth, renewal and love like Mother’s Day. Both Julia Ward Howe (who wrote the words to the “Battle Hymn of the Republic”) and Anna Jarvis tried to establish “Mother’s Day Proclamation” and “Mother’s Friendship Day,” respectively, in an effort to bring a sense of community and promote peace in the fragile country after the Civil War. Neither went anywhere, but Anna Jarvis was successful in establishing a National Mother’s Day on the second Sunday in May to honor her mother a year after her death (1906). She challenged people to commemorate their mothers with letters of gratitude written in their own words. The holiday became official in 1914, just before the start of World War I.
Like most well-meaning and wholesome ideas, Mother’s Day was commercialized and became more of a greeting card and florist money grab than a personal and well-thought-out way to honor the women in one’s life. Jarvis became so tormented by the corporate takeover of her idea that she unsuccessfully fought to repeal the holiday in 1943. Remember this before heading to CVS for a cliche card and the nicest flowers left at your local supermarket, and perhaps consider some different ways to pay tribute to the women that helped shape you.