As we enter the final weeks of Lent, we find ourselves preparing for our Easter celebration by trying to prepare ourselves for the Ressurection of our Lord. During Holy Week, we are given the opportunity to accompany our Lord through his final days and his Passion, which can be transforming to so many. But it can be hard at times to pass the significance and importance of those days to children. I remember at times struggling to understand as a child just how important Good Friday was. Not to mention, I was more focused on Easter and was less intrigued by the other days of Holy Week. As I grew, I came to understand and appreciate the importance of those days, but could also see how less enticing those days are to celebrate for a child.
Good Friday is a very somber occasion, and children will naturally be more attracted to a day filled with festive songs, games, and treats. But while Good Friday is a somber occasion that requires we turn down the noise around us and remember our Lord’s ultimate sacrifice, there are ways for your children to participate that will be more engaging and educational to them.
Building a Resurrection Garden is a wonderful way to remember Christ’s Passion and an amazing visual for children to have a better understanding of the significance of Good Friday. What I also love about this idea is it can be an interactive activity that progresses throughout Holy Week. To do this I recommend building your garden a couple of days before Good Friday. When assembling your garden, try to be resourceful with the things you can find in your yard, garden, or home. Have the children collect small twigs, moss, rocks, and tiny pots. See if you have any herbs or potted flowers that can be used within your garden to provide some greenery and foliage. The best part about this project is you and your children are the artists and there is not one perfect way of doing it. Be creative with the things they find to create a garden that is unique and meaningful to your family.
When it comes to building the garden, start with a strong foundation and it can be any size you want. Depending on what suits your family and your home, you can make your garden as big or small as you like. Using a wide bowl or a pot will provide a good start and you can either fill it in with dirt or any desired filler and then place a pot dish on top. Like any garden you need soil to begin planting. Fill your container with some soil and next create the holes for any plants you want to add in. If you want to add a mound to place your cross later, have the kids shape the garden with some extra soil. I used a tiny pot to create the tomb, but you can be creative and use rocks, or any other objects you have to create one. The rest is really up to your imagination. Add pebbles or rocks around the tomb and have fun laying some moss around the edges of the garden. Allow the kids to really make this their garden to Christ. The final component is the cross or crosses. Have the kids build these out of sticks or twigs they find in the yard. You can also use popsicle sticks. Using hot glue, and with adult supervision, assemble your cross or crosses and place them in your garden.
Now that your garden is built, you can begin teaching your children about the Resurrection. To make this interactive, I suggest holding off on places the crosses in the garden until Good Friday. Gather together with your garden in the center and as a family do the stations of the cross. When you reach the Crucifiction have one or multiple of the children place the cross on the mound in the garden. This is a great way for them to have a visual of what actually took place and they get to participate in the activity. This helps them not just learn and absorb what the Passion was but can move them emotional since it’s more interactive. As you finish up with the stations of the cross and you reach the burial of Christ, have one of the children close the tomb in the garden with a larger rock.
And now we wait for the Resurrection. For some, keeping Holy Saturday sober can be difficult, especially with Easter being the next day. But your Resurrection Garden can help the whole family with that. Find a spot in your home to place the garden throughout the weekend that is easily visible to the family. This will allow every member to reflect on the Passion of Christ any time they pass or see it. You can encourage your children to say a quick prayer in their head when they see it and the whole family can pray the rosary together around the garden both on Good Friday and Holy Saturday.
On Easter Sunday, or Saturday evening when the Easter Vigil begins, you can have the children open the tomb in the garden. They can also place a small piece of folded cloth to represent the folded garments that were found by Mary. Or if you want to make it more exciting, place the folded cloth in the tomb early that morning, this way the kids will be surprised when they open the tomb and find the folded linens already there. And there you have an interactive Resurrection Garden to help your family grow to closer to Christ as you follow him through his Passion and Ressurection. Make this a tradition each year that can be shared with not just your children, but your grandchildren, godchildren, and nieces and nephews. The wonderful thing about this project is that people of all ages can participate. The Resurrection Garden’s visual and interactive components can bring each member of the family closer to our Lord and help us to follow his journey through his ultimate gift for mankind’s salvation.
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