Easter - The missing cross

Being the wife of a minister sometimes finds me trailing round shops looking for things we need to use for a service - don't get me wrong I actually like this! And to be fair usually it's to find something for an activity I have suggested!
So this year found me on the search for cross shaped beads - ( call back later in the week to find out why!)
In fairness to Hobbycraft they do normally stock them but they were out of stock which left me searching for a suitable alternative. As I searched several stores' quite extensive Easter ranges it struck me that amongst all the eggs, bunnies, baskets, and chicks there were no crosses. I guess I didn't really expect there to be but sometimes it's only when we go looking for something that we realise it's not there!
Missing the cross out of Easter is to miss the point, the cross is hard, it's uncomfortable, you can drape it with fabric and flowers but it still remains a symbol of a hard and brutal death. A death that Jesus chose and the means by which I can know God.