Easter Sunday Breakfast. For me, first and last meal of the day!

It started with prayers, said by the great-grandmother, and lasted about three hours, with much more to eat than you can see here. Afterwards, there was tea, coffee, cake, and vodka.

After Resurrection Mass, of course.

Happy Easter in Poland

There's a beautiful, very unpompous formality about Catholicism in Poland. I have been on about five or six pilgrimages, which are as popular here as they were in Chaucer's England, but less scurrilous. The atmosphere on the journey is one of innocent laughter, jokes, songs, vodka, and fun. At the destination, there is serious prayer and piety. They are for me the happiest occasions imaginable, short of Heaven.

When you meet a Priest, you don't say, Good morning!", but, informally, "May God make you happy!", to which the reply is, "With God!" Formally, if you don't know the Priest, you say, "May Jesus Christ be glorified!", to which the reply is, "From age to age, Amen!"

This is not quaint, but normal.

At Christmas and Easter, the short and very informal greeting is, "Happy Holy Day!" More usual at Easter is, "Christ has risen! Alleluja!" or something much longer, and often in verse, such as the following: 

Wieść radosną niosą dzwony 
na wsze świata grają strony, 
że zmartwychwstał Pan nad Pany
Bóg wszechmocny, Bóg kochany.

which translates as:


Bells bring glad tidings
Pealing to all corners of the world.
That the Lord of Lords has risen
God Almighty, the God of love.

The first Resurrection Mass today was at 6 a.m. It is followed by a hearty alcoholic breakfast. I overslept for one of the few times in my life, and will have to go at 10.00, without vodka. My fault.