Happy Easter and Something from the Vault

To all of my Christian friends, as well as the world's 2 billion people of the Christian Faith, I wish you a Joyous Easter. May the year ahead bring us all closer together in the true Spirit of God.

The above painting, "The Ressurrection of Jesus Christ" is by Noel Coypel, a French painter who lived from December 25th, 1628- December 24th, 1707. It was painted in oil on canvas in 1700. It is almost impossible to escape the irony of both his birthdate and day of passing.

There was a time in New York when people celebrated Easter Sunday by promenading down Fifth Avenue dressed in their "good" clothes. It was called "The Easter Parade" and was in vogue from the late 1890's until about the time this photo was taken in 1965.

My brother and I wore seersucker jackets with gray slacks and brown loafers. My mother wore what you see - an A line ensemble with a yellow hat. This was right before the whole world seems to have dropped any sort of dress code. We went to Manhattan that day and joined the crowd walking up the Avenue. I remember thinking that this type of "entertainment" was probably on the way out, and I smiled a little bit wider knowing that this photo was probably going to become a slice of history, a piece of the past.

So much of our world has changed in the last several decades. There seems to be a great intolerance for one anothers' beliefs. A massive incivility seems to have overtaken us all. Let's hope the coming year brings us all a mutual respect and understanding. After all, isn't that really what it's all about?