Remembering the Holy Week at Home
It's Holy Week. I can say that this Lenten celebration is the most observed religious season in the Philippines. On Good Friday specifically, majority of business establishments are closed, even those owned by non-Catholics. My country is populated with Catholic believers, and I am one.
I missed Holy Week in the Philippines. As soon as Holy Monday comes, I can already feel the blessedness of the week. I can see it around me. The ambiance is special. We make special kinds of foods that are prepared just for this time of the year. However, we fast on eating any kind of meat. "Binignit" is the most common type of food trip that we like to cook. It's made of coconut milk, bananas, jackfruit, colorful tapioca, sticky rice balls, taro, sweet potato, and brown sugar. I always make binignit during Holy Week and shared it to my neighbors. It's fun!
Come Good Friday, Catholic churches are flocked with people. We do the "Station of the Cross" wherein people walk a long distance, carrying lighted candles, from the church to a specific route. The walk also ends at the church. It's like a pilgrimage. A little sacrifice.
This religious annual commemoration is totally different from where I am now. Here (US), the Holy Week is just like an ordinary week. Everyone goes to work. Businesses are open. But in my country, the government typically declares Holy Wednesday as the start of the holidays. So, most working people have time off of work from Wednesday to Sunday. Actually, this holiday is perhaps the most favorite holidays of wage-earners because of a long vacation.
My husband and I were not too long ago just started to build a family of our own. Along with this will be "family traditions" and little by little, we are shaping our own. Last year's Holy Week, we remembered the sacrifice of the Savior Jesus Christ through watching "The Passion of the Christ" movie. We also attended church service on Good Friday. This year, we will not be able to go to church because he will be working. However, we will continue the custom of watching the same movie and other Bible stories. Every year should improve.
