April: In the Light of Resurrection
April arrives carrying the wonder of Easter. After the wilderness road of Lent and the shadow of Holy Week, resurrection breaks in, not with noise and spectacle, but with morning light over an empty tomb, with a gardener speaking a name, with broken bread in a quiet room.
Easter is not a denial of sorrow; it is God’s answer to it. The risen Christ still bears his wounds, yet they no longer speak of death: they speak of love enduring. April invites us to live as people of this quiet, defiant hope. Not with forced cheerfulness, but with trust that new life can grow from buried places, as it does in gardens, graves, and human hearts.
This is a month for noticing resurrection in ordinary things: a cracked eggshell near a hedge, warm sun on stone, laughter shared after loss. Resurrection often begins softly.
From the Earth
The land is greening. Hawthorn leaves unfurl like tiny hands, wild garlic carpets damp woodlands, and lambs stumble on unsteady legs in morning mist. The first blossoms, cherry, blackthorn, plum, appear against grey skies like fragile confessions of hope.
Birdsong swells at dawn. The sun rises earlier, lingering longer in the evening. The ground, once stiff with cold, softens beneath boots and hooves. Everything seems to whisper to begin again.
Those Who Went Before
St George (Feast Day: 23rd April)
Though often remembered as a dragon-slayer in legend, St George was a real man: a Roman soldier and Christian martyr from the 3rd century. His story is not one of fantasy, but of courage: he refused to renounce his faith under Emperor Diocletian and was executed for his loyalty to Christ.
In England, St George became a symbol not of violence, but of steadfastness, a reminder that bravery is found not only in battlefields but in holding to truth when it costs us something. In spring, when life is rising again, George reminds us that resurrection requires courage, to stand for light, to choose goodness, to trust that death is never the end of the story.
A Prayer in Action
Place a small bowl of water, a flower, or a simple stone on your table or windowsill - something from the earth. Each morning this month, touch it gently and pray:
“Christ, risen and present, bring new life to the hidden places in me.”
If possible, take a walk during Easter week. Notice signs of newness: blossom, birdsong, the warmth of the sun. Let this be prayer.
“Why do you look for the living among the dead?
He is not here; he has risen.”
