Tradition

There is a word that I have been putting in my posts for a while, I am going to let you find it… Need an idea? Look at the text below…

They are zippy, can be good in the snow and ice (like the Chevy Bolt, does well in the snow) and simply a lot of fun. They don’t require a lot of maintenance either. They don’t need oil change, filter changes or any of the traditional repairs that a gas car needs. (evs)

(I should note that Thanksgiving in Charlie Brown terms is Toast, Popcorn, Pretzels, and Jellybeans. Quite honestly it is a simple and clever idea, my family has been known to throw traditions out the window and enjoy something that we would like and not the traditional meal for Christmas, or Easter) (A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving)

One of my favorite traditions that comes with Thanksgiving is all the food that can be made. I am not sure why, but it is rare for us to make Green Bean Casserole though out the year. I know its tradition and it should be reserved for Thanksgiving and Christmas but there have been times where it would be nice to have it and maybe a turkey sandwich with it. I know I know; I just described a stripped-down Thanksgiving dinner, but think about it, is there a reason we can’t have some of the Thanksgiving foods at any point in the year? I do not see why not (again tradition, but it is tradition to change those traditions). (Thanksgiving, but there are so many in here I am not going to list all of them)

Tradition that is the word that I have been putting in the past three posts (from “EVs”, “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” and “Thanksgiving”). With that word being thrown around a lot I want to sit and tell what it means to me.

Tradition is stated as something that is not supposed to change and there is no reason for it to do so. Fiddler on the Roof is all about Tradition and the opening number is called “Tradition” where the cast tells the audience what each role of the family does. The papas are there the master of the house and read the holy book. The mamas are there to make sure that the house runs nicely and smoothly. The sons are there to learn how to work, and the daughters are there to learn how to mend, tend and fix, preparing for married life. This was created in the time when matchmakers were around and sons and daughters did not know who they were to be married to, and (I am going to assume that) this was also when it was expected to have several children as soon as possible.

To me tradition can either be something that is worth it or not. Growing up we followed the tradition of making things as we go, being kind to those around you and giving love rather than hate. Some of those things are still there, my brother and I would always be nice and help anyone along the way. We also followed the tradition of being at church at 9:00 am every Sunday and being a part of the service, not even knowing what was going on at all. Sometimes you would be at one church and another time you would be at another one.

There is another tradition that I am a fan of, and it is us breaking the traditions that we created in the first place. We have started to do things that we have never done before, we are making burgers and hotdogs for Easter dinner (when it was only us) last Christmas we decided to go with Tri tip steaks that were in the freezer (we have a connection with a company that supplies meats at a reduced price, a lot better quality too). We love to make or break the ideas of something that we are supposed to, I love to break traditions and start new ones.

One thing that I want to ask you is how do you celebrate tradition? Do you play it with the book and keep things the same though out the entire time that it happens? Or do you not have a tradition and that is the tradition?

One thing that I feel that we should be getting used to is breaking the traditions that we have today. There is no rule in place that states that we have to keep things the same.

I was writing this late at night the other day, I was distracted and allowed my mind to be free for a while. I decided to stop writing for the night and pick it up the next day. Well, it occurred to me that Christmas is around the corner and there is no tree out yet, to be honest I forgot about it, my brain is a strange place. As I was wiring up the tree for its lights I remembered a tradition that I loved growing up, but we stopped as we have two dogs who love to be dogs and get into things they shouldn’t (one of them broke into the cookie box one night and had a feast while the other sat there wishing for a cookie).

The tradition goes that my brother, and I would decorate the tree every single year, and put the ornaments up every single time. We would have a blast with it too. Some have Disney on them, and some where others that I loved just because they were up. There were stories behind each and every single one of them and it was a time that we could stop caring about everything that was going on and just decorate the tree.

We have not done it in a long time and I do miss it (I might however decorate the tree a little bit this year), it was always nice to sit there with my brother digging though the ornament box looking at the ornaments and seeing what we can hang up. Our grandparents also had a tradition that would go along side with it, every single year (up until you were 18) you would get an ornament on the tree at their house. When you turn 18 you would stop receiving gifts from them and receive the ornaments (on your birthday). Even though I did not appreciate them at the time, I think about them often. One day those ornaments are going to be on my tree. I cannot wait for that day to come. Why? It is a part of growing up, seeing the tree that they had out (it was always a little one, but no one minded. I don’t remember them having a big tree) and knowing that there is one ornament for each year that has passed. It also helps with a head start in decorating the tree.

What are your traditions each single time they come around? I love traditions but they are built to be broken as well, there is a time and place for them to be broken and it is nice when you know that you have deleted one to start a new one.