A Socially Distanced Easter Egg Hunt

Under a bright blue and sunny sky on Easter Sunday, a smartly dressed group of First Parish of Westwood families gathered for a socially distanced Easter Egg Hunt on church grounds. Just under 40 in attendance, they formed a line between the parking lot and church lawn. At the head of the line, behind a sheet of plexiglass set upon a table, sat Marge Eramo, the church's Faith Community Nurse. She reviewed the Health Forms each attendee had been asked to sign in advance. With the exception of the youngest children, everyone wore masks.

The Health Form was a prerequisite to participating in the day's event. It was modeled after similar forms recently used by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and by local, amateur sport organizations. The short one-pager contained questions familiar to anyone who has attended an organized group event during this pandemic. They included,"Have you experienced any of the following symptoms in the last 48 hours?" and "Have you had close contact with anyone diagnosed with COVID-19 in the past 14 days?"

Asking Easter egg hunters and their families to sign such a Health Form might have been viewed as overkill and an imposition, pre-pandemic. At this same time last year, at the pandemic's start, it would probably have been a nerve-inducing task of foreboding. But by Easter Sunday 2021, with COVID safety protocols widely established, it seemed unsurprising. On this bright, beautiful day, anxiety seemed largely absent in this crowd that had arrived promptly, ready for fun and looking forward to an Easter celebration.

Co-Pastors Rick and Jill Edens stood at a high point on the grassy lawn, and opened the festivities with a welcome and prayer. Following that welcome, toddlers were given the privilege of starting the hunt for all. With the help of a parent, each toddler found a socially distanced starting point and the hunt quickly began. A few minutes later, the go-ahead was given to a second group of young, intrepid egg hunters. Lastly, the oldest group of children, ranging from about 5 to 10 years of age, started their hunt in an adjacent, grassy area. Hunters were allowed to migrate, but many stayed in their original area. Volunteers had stuffed and hid many eggs earlier, with the result that egg hunters were finding the hunting aplenty.

With such diligent hunters, the landscape once colorfully dotted with pink, blue, yellow, green, purple and orange eggs quickly transformed back into a familiar backdrop of more natural green and brown. A quick review of church property indicated that the hunters had been successful in finding their targets. Regardless of whether eggs were hidden higher in tree limbs, or lower among leaves and in the shadow of large stones, the hunters appeared to have found them all. The hunters would break open the plastic eggs to find them filled with candy, friendship bracelets, necklaces, toys, stickers, and tattoos. Some also contained a Bible verse on paper like the fortune inside a fortune cookie.

The end of the hunt offered another highlight. As a gift to attending families, Westwood photographer Doug Hyde snapped professional portraits of the children to commemorate the day.

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