Easter is yet another holiday predicated on religion, which creates an interesting situation for someone like me. I am non-religious (probably some combination of a strong agnostic and a freethinker), yet I still celebrate these religious holidays (mainly just Christmas and Easter). Some “people of faith” out there might be thinking, how do you celebrate these holidays without a religious connection, being that Christmas is supposed to be the birth of Jesus Christ and Easter is supposed to celebrate his resurrection?

First off… if someone is ever truly resurrected, sign me up because I’d love to witness that.

Moving on to celebrating these holidays… When I was younger, they were days that I knew I was getting presents; either from a fat guy in a red suit or a huge anthropomorphic bunny. Even though I was raised to pray and believe in God, my family did not really do the whole church thing and the religious aspect wasn’t emphasized too much during these holidays. As I got older, they became something totally different to me, not any more about getting the presents you wanted so badly and then leaving them at home while you go spend the day with family.

Family, that’s what these holidays have become about to me. While each one comes with its own set of traditions, be it pine trees in your house or colored eggs, they all revolve around family. At this point, the names honestly matter very little. Christmas… Easter, the could be called anything, and could be given any religious backstory … I would still view them in the same manner.

These are days set aside for family, and for introspection.

Suffice it to say, I love my family and appreciate them daily, however holidays, much like a birthday, are when I think we should celebrate that appreciation. Have a big dinner, catch up with that distant relative that you haven’t talked to in years. Play games together, share laughs. If maybe you have been at odds with someone lately (or for a long time), use the holidays to heal those wounds and move past stupid things.

I also believe that these days should be used for introspection… self reflection… Look at yourself in the mirror, how do you view yourself? Is there a difference between the “you” that people see and the “you” that exists in your head? How do you feel about life? Reflect on yourself and either be happy with yourself or fix things so that you are. If you need help, look to those closest to you, hopefully you’ll be having a massive meal with them today!

Another thing I think about is how do I treat others and could I be doing more?

I enjoy people, and want to be the type of person that others look to for a good example. So this is where I shout out an easy way to help people by doing something that everyone does daily…

Charity Miles

Charity Miles is an organization that donates money on your behalf when you walk, run, or cycle. You can download the app on an iPhone or Andriod phone. To put your minds to rest…

>>>>IT’S COMPLETELY FREE!!<<<< both to download and to use.

Basically… if you have a smartphone and run, cycle, or walk (and nearly everyone walks!) you have no excuse not to use this!

I used Charity Miles while I trained

It’s as simple as opening the app, choosing a charity from their list (they have quite a few) and doing your thing. Bikers get 10 cents/mile and walkers/joggers get 25 cents/mile. The money goes straight to the charity you selected. They have an initial sponsorship pool of $1,000,000 !! It’s a great setup and for amazing causes, I’ve been using it for over a year and have logged both of my half-marathons on it (and all of the training leading up to them).

I also used it during races… and rocked my Charity Miles shirt (I now have 5 shirts from them)

As part of your Easter celebration… go for a walk and help somebody else 🙂

Happy Easter all, enjoy your day!!

Peace!

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🙂