My family’s Easter traditions come back from when my great grandmother still lived in Ukraine. Both of my great grandparents and grandmother all came over in 1949. Part of the tradition is we begin Lent earlier than most other religions. Our whole family would participate together, even after she passed. On Holy Saturday we all cook, all the food must be made on that day. There is to be no meat or dairy during this time. Special eggs called psyanka are made, they are very intricate and beautifully written and drawn on. Those eggs come from a story about a woman offering a tired traveler an egg, but the man was actually Christ himself who gave them back to her with beautiful lines and artwork. We also have special Easter baskets containing foods that represent something. For example, there is paska which is a sweeter bread that is supposed to represent Christ’s body. Typically our family spends the afternoon together, rather than morning, which is most common. It is a day where we remember my great grandmother, it brings us closer together, knowing she is there in spirit with us still. A few of us don’t practice religion anymore, but we still participate all together in respect to our past, and of course to make our elders happy. 
 

Relationship:  Grandchild of im/migrant Grandchild of im/migrant