the Lord is risen!
He is risen indeed! Hallelujah!

It is five years since I have exchanged this traditional Easter greeting with my mother. One of us would phone the other on Easter morning to proclaim these words. She died in February 2004. I am reminded of this no doubt because of reading Didion's book in which she talks about memories and the anniversaries and events that trigger them. I called my sister, now visiting in Connecticut, to give the greeting, but she was not there. I'll try again later. It just doesn't seem to be Easter without saying it to someone. I might also note that we used to exchange this greeting at birthdays, as in, "Your age has risen!" "It has risen indeed! Hallelujah!" And after a certain age, it is indeed Hallelujah!

Nor does it seem to be Easter without the traditional (in our family) Easter dinner. After the greeting it would be time to prepare the leg of lamb, asparagus, tiny roasting potatoes and lemon mousse. This year it's going to be birria, rice pilaf, green salad, foccacia, and perhaps some home-made vanilla ice cream. It is impossible to get fresh lamb here. There is one carneceria in Tecoman where we can get frozen shoulder cuts but it's not very good. We'll eat local and start a new tradition.

Semana Santa is over for this year. The disco(s) shut down at 3 AM this morning. The first wave of holidaymakers has passed; people have packed up and gone, leaving their trash and debris scattered all over the street. I saw the garbage collection crew get out of their truck and actually do a cursory clean-up on the street in front of our house. There's more to be done but at least they gave it a quick once-over. Pasqua starts tomorrow. The second wave of celebrants will begin trickling into town next Wednesday for four more days of noise and fun. This means we will have at least two and maybe three quiet nights with no loud music from across the street.

With Chanticleer singing Palestrina playing in the background, the surf crashing on the beach and the sun sparkling off the water, it's time to get the foccacia started (and risen!). Happy Easter.