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This weekend certainly carries special significance for Christians around the world.
Easter, coming when it does in the early part of spring, offers a sense of renewal, and a reminder that no matter how bleak things might seem or how desperate the situation might appear, there is always room for hope.
About 81 percent of Americans say they will celebrate Easter this year.
That's a number that hasn't changed all that much in the last decade or so, according to Statista. The high point was 83 percent in 2013, the provider of market and consumer data reports.
Those numbers might be higher in our area -- in fact, WalletHub reports that Pittsburgh is the best city for celebrating Easter in the country. The region, according to the Washington, D.C.-based personal financial website, stands up well across the 11 metrics that were used to reach that determination.
While finishing first overall, Pittsburgh was third in Easter traditions and weather and fourth in overall observance of the holiday. Surprisingly, Pittsburgh was 96th when it comes to looking at kids and Easter.
Finishing second overall was Birmingham, Ala., while Buffalo was third; Orlando, Fla., was fourth; El Paso, Texas, was fifth; Atlanta was sixth; Honolulu was seventh; St. Louis was eighth; Las Vegas was ninth and New Orleans was 10th. Cincinnati was 12th overall and Cleveland was 13th, which made it tough to believe that Columbus could get no higher than 76th.
No matter where you stand on the list, though, WalletHub said that Americans were expected to spend more than $3.1 billion on candy this year. That's a sizable chunk of the $22 billion it is estimated we will be spending on the holiday for everything that goes along with it, including $7.3 billion on food and $3.5 billion on clothing.
Residents of our region will have a little easier time of spending some of that money than others -- Pittsburgh ranks fourth in the number of candy and chocolate stores per capita, coming in behind New York, Honolulu and Las Vegas, which tied for first. Pittsburgh was fifth in the number of flower and gift shops per capita -- Orlando and Honolulu were tied for first, with St. Louis third and Miami fourth.
No matter what, though, candy ends up being the star, with WalletHub saying that 85 percent of Easter baskets will contain chocolate or candy. And, among the most popular treats will be chocolate eggs and bunnies, which will be found in 44 percent of baskets, far surpassing jelly beans, which will be found in 20 percent of baskets.
There will be, the report indicates, 91 million chocolate bunnies and a staggering 16 billion jelly beans consumed -- that total, according to the survey, is enough to circle the globe three times.
When it comes to the bunnies, 78 percent of Americans eat the ears first, with 16 percent eating the feet first and 6 percent eating the tail first. As for the eggs, 42 percent favor solid chocolate, 35 percent favor those filled with peanut butter, caramel or chocolate ganache and 23 percent like hollow chocolate.
Which brings up the annual question -- just what is your favorite Easter candy?
According to numbers compiled by DoorDash, the overwhelming favorite across the United States is the Reese's peanut butter egg. That's followed by Cadbury Creme eggs; Starburst jelly beans; Hershey's Kisses; the Snickers, Twix, Milky Way and more assorted variety pack; the Galerie value jelly bean-filled egg; the Lindt milk chocolate bunny; the Dove milk chocolate egg; Peeps marshmallow chicks; and the Ferrero Rocher hazelnut chocolate bunny.
Residents of the Tri-State Area are in line with those top picks: The favorite in Ohio and West Virginia is the Reese's peanut butter egg, while coming in first in Pennsylvania is the Snickers, Twix and Milky Way assortment pack.
Sales numbers seem to back that up. Reese's peanut butter eggs are the stop seller in the 113 stores across Ohio, West Virginia and Michigan that make up Kroger's Columbus division, the grocer said. Starburst jelly beans are second, Cadbury mini eggs are third, Brach's Classic Jelly Bird Eggs fourth and the Lindt gold bunny fifth.
Another part of the holiday is the annual ritual of decorating eggs -- WalletHub says 180 million eggs will be purchased for Easter, and more than 16 million dye kits are sold each year. And, if you are looking for the perfect sentiment to share with someone, it's likely you can find it among the 195 Easter cards available from Hallmark.
It's all something to sit back and savor while you enjoy the holiday.
(Gallabrese, a resident of Steubenville, is executive editor of the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times.)