Palm Sunday...

Hope you all enjoy a beautiful Sunday.... and for those that celebrate...enjoy a beautiful Palm Sunday...
Buona Domenica delle Palme a Tutti! :)
I updated this post from the original posted back on 3/24/13...

This week will be a very busy week for me...well, month for that matter...lol....all kinds of happenings....
Besides it being the Easter holiday coming up...one of my favorite holidays of the year...
I also guess I have pretty big "milestone" birthday as they say, coming up on Friday ;) Although personally I don't really take stock in the age thing at all...lol...it's just a number....and never thought about anyone in terms of age as far back as I can remember...in fact since I was a child I always leaned towards hanging out with those older than myself...listening, watching, learning...and especially the elderly....Grandparents....etc....
Whether it be chatting with an old World War II veteran at a coffee shop....or helping a  homeless person on the streets of NYC through the years...sometimes when I was close to being the "starving artist" homeless myself during tough times....lol....or simply someone coming up to me at a grocery store to tell me random stories...lol...it's happened all my life....
I often believe I must have belonged in a different time...or may have lived in the past...which may be why I am so passionate about all things retro and vintage and history...archaeology...etc...etc....but I digress...lol

And....also this week...it's my Uncle's 80th birthday as well...so, lot's of family and friends and functions and festivities!! :)

Today is Palm Sunday ... a holy day that marks the beginning of  "Holy Week" and it commemorates Jesus' entry into the city of Jerusalem...
This special day marks the beginning of the final week of Lent and the events leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter. 

My Nonno(grandfather)...on my Mom's side, from Calabria, used to do this and make these crosses with the palm and I remember him trying to teach me and my cousins when I was a kid...
I sometimes forget how to make them now and it takes me awhile and I  have a hard time figuring it out! ;) lol
My Aunt is the one in the family that really knows how to make them and continues the tradition now...
She also makes the best Easter Bread or "Cuzzupa" or "Cuzzupala" as we call it,  known to man!
But I will save that for another post :)
Here's a link to my wonderful friend Dottie's blog post with her family recipe! :)
http://familyplusfoodequalslove-dottie.blogspot.com/2015/03/cuzzupa-or-cruzzupe-italian-easter.html

It's times like these that make me really miss my family members that are no longer here, yet at the same time, also make me smile, thinking of wonderful memories and traditions...

In Italy, palm leaves are used along with sometimes small olive branches, which are readily available in the Mediterranean climate. These are placed at the entrance of houses (for instance, hanging above the door) to last until the following year's Palm Sunday. For this reason, usually palm leaves are not used whole, due to their size; instead, leave stripes are braided into smaller shapes. Small olive branches are also often used...
Here in the US, I remember we used to get the Palm at Church growing up and bring it home during the season...and still do to this day...

Here is some more info and also tons of links to make a Palm Cross if you're interested in learning...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_Sunday
http://www.palmsundayquotes.com

Photo links to explore...
http://www.google.com/search?q=making+a+cross+with+palm&hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=kGVPUfnbPO2u2AWZiYCgDQ&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1884&bih=755

Some excellent "How To" Videos...
http://www.google.com/search?q=making+a+cross+with+palm&hl=en&tbm=vid&source=lnms&sa=X&ei=H2ZPUbPSHajc2QXWsICQDQ&ved=0CA0Q_AUoAA&biw=1884&bih=755

                                                                Click photo to enlarge

Thank you all for stopping by and reading....
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Buona Domenica delle Palme a Tutti!!
Have a beautiful Sunday Everyone!
Love,
Joe
♥