— links, religion, kite-flying, revelling & touring
MY reflection on Easter as a boy recalls my boyhood days when I enjoyed the Easter celebrations that bring not only religion and the Crucifixion, but kite-flying, picnicking, and all that is cherished by the good, the bad and the indifferent. As a boy, I enjoyed Easter celebrations not only in Guyana, but in Grenada, where kite-flying is highlighted by the children not on Easter Monday, as we do in Guyana, but on Good Friday.    What a difference!
In case you are curious and want to find out why I refer to Grenada, I crave your indulgence to explain that I am a Guyanese by birth but had my early education in Grenada, and later education in British Guiana at Central High School, the Ideological Institute at Loo Creek, and then at the University of Guyana, where I obtained a Diploma in Public Communication.
However, in referring to Easter, I must say that, in Grenada, I enjoyed kite-flying, which is mostly done on hilltops and in open spaces.
In Grenada, as a boy, I began thinking about Easter shortly after the Xmas celebrations. At this stage, I would use pointers from palm trees to make kite frames for my relatives and me. I would use clamber cherries to paste the kites, which my relatives and I would fly from time to time as we waited anxiously for Easter to arrive.
By the time Easter had come around, I had enough kites for myself and colleagues.
I enjoyed kite-flying in Grenada in those days; which, because of the hilly nature of the island, was mostly done from hill tops.
As time went on, I improved my design and was able to make different types of kites.
While other boys and I would fly our kites from time to time, kite- flying as a whole was not highlighted until Good Friday.
The operations continue on Glorious Saturday, but not with the same purpose and humility as the Good Friday exercise.
In relation to Easter tours, relatives and teachers would take us on excursions to the famous Grand Anse Beach and other places of interest on that island.
Among the Good Friday incidents that I can recall, there was a decision which kite flyers adopted as a game, wherein they would attach a razor blade to their kite tails and, in fun, they used those blades to cut each other’s kite thread during the flying operations.  Many of the kites were lost through this process.
As a boy, Easter brought me a new education. In Grenada, I noticed that, on Holy Thursday, adults collected an egg that was freshly laid and used same by pouring the white of the egg into a drinking glass, which in turn reflected images that would determine a person’s future, or what was to be expected.
In some instances, the image was that of a bride and bridegroom; in other instances, there were funeral ceremonies and other images.
As a result of the images reflected, some people were hesitant to try out the egg issue, fearful that they would receive an image that was unfavourable to them.
As a boy in British Guiana, Easter meant a lot to me, because it brought me a better understanding of the Crucifixion.
While I am still wondering why, in Grenada, kite-flying is highlighted on Good Friday and not on Easter Monday, as highlighted in Guyana, I am convinced that, apart from the razor blade/cut-kite incidents, Guyana has the clout, as far as kite fliers are concerned.
I have found another field of endeavour associated with Easter celebrations in Guyana: church services, including Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and the picnics that follow. Moreover, as an adult, I attend the Anglican church “Transfiguration”, and I support the organisation in all its Easter projects.