“A few days before Easter, the gates of hell were opening, and it was as if Satan was entering my mother”

Easter is associated with time spent with family, in a quiet, nice and cheerful atmosphere. Jesus is risen (at least for Christians), spring is coming. Only reasons to be happy. True? That’s how it is in theory. In many homes, we sit down at the table boiling from the inside, because for the last few days there has been a real chaos in the house. Every corner had to be cleaned. The smell of detergents hung in the air and the atmosphere was so thick that you could hang an axe. Do you know this? Our interlocutors are too good.

“A few days before Easter, it was as if Satan himself had entered my beloved mother”

– Everyone is put to work: my mother is cleaning the windows, I am running around with a cloth, my father is running around with a vacuum cleaner… Just to eat a slightly more sumptuous breakfast than usual and end the Easter celebrations there – Justyna said in an interview with us. – We never invited anyone, no one visited us spontaneously, 2/3 of the household members are declared atheists, 1/3 are not orthodox Catholics either, so this… I don’t really know what we celebrate on Easter, but it is – mainly in my mother – some need to cultivate traditions, although she herself declares that she hates all holidays – she laughed.

The situation was similar for Ewelina when she still lived with her parents. As she admitted, she has always liked holidays, but the pre-Christmas time is “as if the earth was opening and the gates of hell were opening.”

My whole house is always turned upside down. A few days before Easter, it was as if Satan himself had entered my beloved mother. She laughed that she should have a baton like a conductor. But I think a whip would suit her better

– said Ewelina, not laughing at all. – She was running like crazy, she didn’t know what to put her hands into. She assigned us tasks (at that time I had the impression that they were the most senseless and backbreaking tasks), such as washing doors, strips, light switches and electrical sockets. And best of all, we didn’t even invite anyone over, because we were mostly the ones visiting family. I never understood why it couldn’t be done at another time, and clean up during the holidays just like every week on Saturday. Somewhere between these Dantesque scenes and sitting together at the table, you had to squeeze 20 seconds into your calendar to calm your nerves and not kill each other while sharing the Easter egg.

I go to church myself, celebrate and experience Easter. But I’m not going to make the preparations a circus like they were at home. Cleaning – yes, but like every Saturday. I prefer to focus on what I like to do and that also benefits my family, i.e. cooking. Instead of rags and detergents – white borscht, mazurka and babka. And dozens of stuffed eggs

– added Ewelina.

“When I was little, my mother ‘had’ to wash the blocks because Jesus would not rise from the dead.”

Karolina also has not-so-pleasant experiences with pre-Christmas cleaning. Her mother was also the main person in charge at her home. Before Christmas, she ruled with an iron hand. Until the “workers’ revolt” occurred.

Christmas cleaning in many homes begins a few weeks before Easter. photo: shutterstock / Kmikhidov

– It was the same at my house. And apart from it, there was a large garden, a summer kitchen and a barn to take care of, because when the guests come for dinner, they will wander around the barns. When I was little, I didn’t want to come back from school on the days before Christmas. Nerves, screaming… The worst thing was the basket. Everyone is tired, sleep-deprived and angry since the morning, but you have to smile in front of the priest.

Those days are gone, but it’s thanks to me. One time I couldn’t stand it anymore and I said: “Go, dear mother, to your bastards, let me cook and my sister will clean up.” Unfortunately, she still doesn’t like it, but oh well. At least the borscht is seasoned

– Karolina summed up.

– For as long as I can remember, my grandmother has been flying the mop before every holiday. As if that was the most important thing, Asia said. – He washes windows, floors, dusts and in the meantime cooks. And then she is tired and complaining throughout the holidays. But you can’t say that the sanitary inspectorate doesn’t come on holidays, and you can order cakes and some dishes… I’ll never understand it.

At Julita’s, Easter also involved cleaning a few days earlier. Even though she doesn’t have such traumatic experiences, she still remembers “the most senseless activities” that her parents came up with. – The best thing was washing the meat grinder and all the kitchen equipment that no one was using anyway. And when I was little, my mother “had” to wash the blocks because Jesus would not resurrect – she laughed.

And what does pre-Christmas cleaning look like or look like in your place? Also the whole house is turned upside down to wipe away every speck of dust? Or maybe you approach the topic casually and skip general cleaning? We’re hella curious!