Easter can be quite a boring time and in Finland, we literally watch grass grow. A week or so before the Easter break we buy little packets of seeds and some soil and fill a few containers. They take about 5-6 days to start sprouting but move very fast after that. These are at 8 days now. I like doing this and it really does make the house feel fresher.
This is done to signal the coming Spring and bring some long forgotten green into the home since the trees lost their leaves back in October and the ground has been covered in snow since December. Actually, it got to plus 10 (centigrade) or so last week but now the ground is covered in snow again and it is minus 6. The word for it is Takatalvi in Finnish, the return of Winter. Sounds ominous. For me, it poses a little bit of a challenge as I changed from winter to summer tires two weeks ago (Winter tires are studded) and it is going to be very slippery driving.
Easter for us is filled with moving from relative to relative eating. There are traditional foods with the most interesting being mämmi. It is a rye flour and malted rye dessert eaten with sugar and cream. It is very rich and an acquired taste but cover anything in enough cream and sugar and it will go down. I would include a picture but it it is not the greatest dessert to look at. Well, it looks like... crap.
For most in Finland, there are not a lot of religious aspects to any of the holidays as even though the country claims a majority of Lutherans, it is generally not very attached to the dogma. They do like their traditions though and hold on to them with gusto. For me, I enjoy eating and spending time with family and friend.
Hopefully, this finds you well wherever you are and whatever you are doing.
Pretty soon, I will have to go mow the lawn ;)
Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]
[ another pot of grass - not the fun kind ]