The Mothers of Easter and Four Angels

One woman sits at her vanity and combs her little daughter's beautiful hair. It's time to get the jeweled cross necklaces from the jewelry box. A few words about not getting that new pink dress dirty at the Easter egg hunt. Her husband is washing the Lexus and her son is complaining about having to walk the dog before they go. She is so looking forward to mingling with friends at the Church Easter Dinner. She hums the song,"Easter Parade" as she puts on the finishing touches of being dressed up for the grand day.

One woman sits in the shade of a rag tent. She braids her daughter's hair and uses a torn away piece of her own pink blouse to make the tie at the end. Her husband went to a Catholic mission tent to see if he could get food for the day. Her son is playing with a stray dog. It's the first time she had seen him smile in weeks. She knows it's Easter Sunday and she prays to the Saints with her rosary beads that God will help her family. She hums,"Amazing Grace" as she waits for her husband to come back.

One woman prepares a ham and talks on the phone with her mother. She had boiled some eggs, had the kids color them and her husband is hiding them in the freshly mowed back yard. She looks out the window and thinks about how much she loves him and her wonderful children. They are barely getting by since his hours were cut back and her home business slowed considerably. She smiles at the picture of Jesus that hangs on the living room wall. With a little whisper of "thank you," she stirs the memories of Easter Sundays gone by

One woman thinks about the dread of going to her in laws. Her husband is still asleep from a drunken night with his friends. She looks out the window and wonders about freedom for her and her children. Her husband has a good job and constantly shoves that fact in her face while calling her a lazy worthless bitch. She looks at the large bruise on her leg and thinks about Jesus. She wonders if someday she will end up being beaten and murdered? She remembers the last Easter Sunday when her husband smashed all of the kid's Easter eggs she had made in her face. She told everyone that the cuts were from falling in the rose bush.

Four Angels write in the diarys of souls, dated for Easter Sunday. One Angel closes the book and shakes her head. One Angel closes the book and smiles. Two Angels close their books and cry.