The American Catholic

Easter is probably my favorite holiday. Definately my favorite Catholic holiday. A season of sacrifice and hope, new beginnings, and forgiveness, I've always felt that if you understand Easter, you understand Catholicism.

Before anybody gets the wrong idea, no, I'm not an extremely religious person. I was raised in the Catholic church and I enjoy the history, mystery, and ritual of that institution. I am a person of faith - I believe in a genderless Creator, the miracles of Jesus Christ, and that reading the Bible can create as much confusion and conflict as it does comfort and enlightenment. I do not believe in Papal infallibility, that premarital or homosexual love is sinful, that the sole responsibility of a Catholic is to make more Catholics, or that traumatized women should be forced to carry unwanted children to term.

Despite these and other rather stunning philosophical disputes, I do consider myself a Catholic. I do pray the Hail Mary and believe in about 80% of the Nicene Creed. (I'm not really looking for the resurrection of the dead, for example. Zombies are more Westley's thing.) And the truth is, I know many more Catholics who openly embrace gay marraige, birth control, and the consumption of beef on Good Friday than those who oppose these practices.

All I can really say to explain this seeming paradox is that I am, and most of the other people (and therefore Catholics) that I know are, American. America is a pluralist society. For the most part, we believe in a prismatic nature of truth. Just as the angle of the light as it hits the prism will alter the shape and strength of the rainbow, so the experiences and influences of a person's life will effect the way each of us sees the world. This doesn't stop some of us from being obnoxiously stubborn, but it does protect our right to disagree with the status quo and think through to our own conclusions. In the end, it's really the Golden Rule that most of us try to follow - Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Disagree with respect. Don't attempt to legislate morality. Recognize that faith is beautiful, but fanaticism is hideous. And so on...

In any case, I had a lovely Easter this year. Westley's family had us over for brunch and an egg hunt with the kids, then we joined my family for a delicious lamb roast and shared a film together. It was a busy, beautiful day, full of sunshine and love. And as I broke bread with not one but two diverse groups of Catholics, all of whom have shared intense disagreements and debates with one another over the years, I realized that this was a true Easter - a celebration of our miraculous, unconditional love for one another, and our resurrected faith in family.

Going Bananas

When you are an event planner, going to a big party that you didn't plan can be an experience. It's not that you mean to be critical - you just can't help it. You notice all kinds of things that ordinary party-goers don't. Does the venue decor clash with the event decor? Is station placement logical, with a steady flow? Is someone there to assist guests with anything that isn't automatically apparent?

Last Sunday, I left Elvis Weekend in Wildwood, NJ to make the trip to Washington Crossing, PA for JQ's baby shower. I had done nothing for the party, and was feeling kind of bad about it. Especially since I had done so much for JQ's sister, LittleT, when she was expecting her first child just a few years earlier.

But LittleT and her mom had given me a heads up in advance and knew about the weekend conflict. Getting to the shower wasn't an issue, but being available in the days beforehand to prepare, collect, deliver, etc. wasn't going to be possible. So there I was, an ordinary guest at a party with no insight into what could be expected.

Kudos to LittleT - you have a career in event planning if you ever get sick of teaching music! (As if that would ever happen!)

The venue, the Martha's Vineyard room at the Washington Crossing Inn, was pretty great overall. Onsite catering created a Sunday Brunch menu that was varied and interesting, with several lower-calorie options available to prevent the buffet from becoming a dieter's dilemma. Everything tasted fresh and bright and even the baked goods (which I'm pretty sure were prepared by a local bakery, not onsite) still had the day-of aroma and texture. The room itself was a little tight for the 40-person party it claims to service and was heavily decorated - plants, clocks, fireplace, fans, pictures, candles. This can be a problem, but LittleT and my aunt set it to their advantage, enlisting just a touch of fun, simple party decorations that gave the whole space a cozy, party-in-someone's-living-room feel.

Monkeys were key. JQ and hubby had chosen monkeys as a theme for the nursery, so monkeys combined with various shades of green in the linens and balloons to make a sweet little jungle.

The cake, which was made by a friend, was absolutely adorable and used fondant appropriately. (It's decoration, people. Just because it's edible doesn't mean it's tasty!) Hand-cut fondant monkeys peeked out around the cake and bounced around the topper, which read "Let's Go Bananas... (JQ)'s Having a Baby Boy!" I wasn't supposed to eat any cake, but I had a few bites of Mom's and it was a delicious, moist, devil's food. (Layer 2 was orange pound cake. Party-goers gave it great reviews, but I didn't get the chance to taste it.)

Games were all written and served as excellent icebreakers. My favorite was coming up with a boy's name for each letter of the alphabet, which resulted in awesomely rediculous suggestions like Nostradamus and Renquist. This is especially funny since the couple have not yet come up with a name (they swear they aren't just withholding), so even the most absurd suggestions seem somehow possible...

A traditional ladies-only shower allowed for a huge cross-section of JQ's life to be present with her despite the 40 max guest list, and it was wonderful to see so many friends show up to share the day with her.

And of course, family! All of the aunts, cousins, and mothers were there - even our cousin Funnyman's fiancee, whose wedding we'll all be attending this summer. (This girl is awesome and I need to come up with a nickname for her pronto, because I have a feeling she's going to factor in our lives in a big way from now on. You can sort of see her in the top picture of the collage, helping JQ and hubby hold up her gift - a clothesline filled with beautiful new baby clothes.)

All in all, a huge success, a ton of fun, and the little snugamuffin made out like a bandit!

Congrats, cousin!