By: Maddie Walsh ‘20

If you know anything about Catholic families, you know that we don’t mess around when it comes to Easter, and my family is no different. Not only do we attend mass throughout Holy Week and invite my entire extended family over for The Big Day, but we go hard for the forty days leading up to Easter, also known as the holy period “Lent.” For as long as I can remember, my father and I have given up all processed sugar during Lent as part of a symbolic fast intended to strengthen our relationship with God. For someone who eats as much ice cream as I do, that is NOT an easy sacrifice (I guess that’s the point) but it makes me appreciate Easter that much more. Fortunately, there’s always plenty of sugar available to make up for lost time. After Easter mass in the morning, my family makes a ceremonious trip to Dairy Queen for extra large blizzards, soon followed by a buffet of desserts courtesy of my talented aunts and cousins. I look forward to this day all year long. This year, however, I dreaded it.