Letter from the editor

Tradition:  a long-established custom that has been passed on from one generation to another.

Traditions are full of life and meaning. A nostalgia so tangible you can feel it in your chest. A regular life occurrence you remember with all your senses: the sight of Christmas trees lit up at night, the sound of fireworks, the smell of birthday candles freshly blown out.  We regale our families and friends with memories of past traditions, how they came about and why they hold meaning.  And in the best of experiences, we hope to pass traditions along to those we love and leave behind.

Many people have daily traditions.  We typically call these schedules or routines.  However, with the accumulation over decades, they begin to look a lot like traditions.  In my home, we practiced customs like no TV before school in the mornings, homework before riding bikes, and a goodnight kiss on the forehead before sleep.  We practiced daily family dinners around the kitchen table almost every night with my father blessing the food before we ate.  My collective memories of these everyday occurrences equaled a solid family tradition in my heart and mind.

Then there are weekly traditions. Nearly every week, my large extended family gathered for Sunday lunch after church.  This was a tradition I grew to expect, know, and love. It seemed like the adults would talk long after the meal with no end in sight.  My cousins and I would slip away to the big green hill by the putting green and inevitably find ourselves rolling down the green grass in our Sunday dresses laughing all the way.  To this day, I can smell the green grass and hear the sounds of laughter on those Sunday afternoons. 

Most familiar are annual traditions.  My mother loved to throw a birthday party.  Even in the 70’s, before Instagram, Pinterest and the internet itself, my mother made “A Birthday at the Movies” with a Disney filmstrip from the library set up in the living room.  The event was complete with construction paper purses on string and paper money.   My older cousins ran the popcorn and candy concession stand on a card table on the back patio where we purchased our treats before entering the living room. Birthday parties were a tradition in our home!

Each year, we received a 45-record in our Easter baskets.  My extended family went to my aunt and uncle’s farm every Thanksgiving. My mother made a homemade gingerbread house every Christmas with my sister and me.  And not the kind from the craft store.  The genuine, made from scratch gingerbread baked in a pan. And to mark the memory, we took a photo standing in front of the gingerbread house to measure how tall we had gotten year after year.

We continue traditions because they carry meaning and life and love.  However, merely practicing a tradition for the sake of tradition is no reason to continue.  In some seasons of life, it is right to begin new traditions. A newly married couple may develop their own traditions. A move to a new city may require developing new regular events.  The loss of loved ones may create a need to develop new traditions with new meaning. 

With all of the transition in the world over the past couple of years, maybe it’s time to create some new traditions alongside your loved ones?   

Traditions provide a certain safety and comfort in knowing what to expect around the corner.  Love the memories and the meaning.  Hold them loosely, though, remembering to embrace new life and thus new traditions as you continue your journey.

May this holiday season and the New Year be full of life, meaning,  and new traditions! 

Tag Tocal in photos of some of your favorite traditions.