Paska is a special kind of bread, on the sweeter side, usually served with icing. It is an Easter tradition Mennonites picked up during their sojourn in Ukraine.
When I was growing up our family received paska each Easter from my mother’s friend Agnes. She always made us a loaf of paska bread and six paska buns all beautifully iced and decorated, one for each member of our family.
In the 1960s our second home in Steinbach was a rented house on Kroeker Avenue. Mrs. Agnes Gerbrandt lived just two doors down. She and my mother became friends.
Mom was raising four children but Mrs. Gerbrandt was raising ten and she was a widow. My parents tried to help her out in a variety of ways and she never forgot that.
When we moved after two years Mom and Agnes remained friends and Agnes started bringing us her delicious paska every Easter.
Many years later when my Mom was ill and hospitalized for extended periods Agnes was one of her most faithful visitors.
Both my Mom and Agnes have passed away but this morning when I am attending the paska breakfast at my church I will be thinking about both of them.
Other posts………
What Next? 