Holiday Traditions

When I start talking about Holiday traditions to family and friends, the conversation can go on for hours. I think it a topic most of us enjoy because it, if nothing else, can bring remembrance of that which we hold dear and nostalgic.

To me a tradition is anything we "always do" or that we do most of the time. For instance, one Holiday tradition we have done on most Christmas Eves is to have hor'dourves and dessert as an early evening meal. This began a very long time ago when, as a young wife and mother, I wanted to try some of those yummy looking recipes that appeared every year in the magazines. However, my family wanted the traditional meal for Christmas and we were always at my in-laws for Thanksgiving. (Even today, it has to be the set menu we always have on those days or there would be culinary mutiny in the house.)

So I came up with the idea of the hor'dourve and dessert Christmas Eve "dinner". It turned out to be wonderful and I have enjoyed it ever since. I have gotten a chance to try some new things but the food also tended to be easy to prepare ahead. The only time we didn't do this was during the time I was on staff at a church for a few years. Christmas was a very busy time at the church and we had to be there for Christmas Eve services early. So our Christmas Eve tradition those years was to have dinner at our favorite cafeteria (which is one of the prettiest places near where we lived) and then go to the service. So sometimes we have to adapt our traditions but they are still "a good thing". This year, since there are only the three of us, we may do both by going to the cafeteria for a late lunch/early dinner and then I'll serve a few hor'dourves much later.

Another tradition I've mentioned is to give three presents (ie: The Three Wise Men) and one book each year on Christmas Eve and then to have a stocking for both kids on Christmas morning. I think my daughter looked forward to the stocking more than anything. There was always an orange in the toe of the stocking (a remembrance of Early American Christmas traditions). I would be on the lookout all year for interesting stocking items. I could be more creative with what I gave a girl but it was also easier to make little boys happy. If nothing else, fill the stocking with Matchbook cars. :)

We start decorating the house on the day after Thanksgiving (or at least the weekend after) and that is when we bring out our collection of Christmas music. Okay, sometimes I bring the music out when I'm making Thanksgiving food but never the decorations (although I fully understand putting any outside lights on the house during milder late autumn weather!). I want Thanksgiving to be thoroughly honored in our home even if the stores have forgotten it weeks earlier. I care more about the Thanksgiving table decorations and food than I do any other meal during the year.

When my son was younger, we would often do a "unit study" revolving around Thanksgiving for a couple of weeks and spend much of our school time studying the true meaning of why the Pilgrims came, what they went through, etc. (We would do the same during the years we planned to attend the Feast of the Hunter's Moon, studying the people and places associated with that part of history.)

There were so many other little things we would do that would make this way too long. There are other traditions I wish I had done but thought of too late. For instance, I wish I'd taken pictures on Christmas day more often to remember in these years. I wish I had written down the recipes I made on Christmas Eve each year so I'd have those today. When one is around 30, you don't realize how little you actually remember at 50.

My daughter told me a friend of hers always gets a new nightgown (hmmm...or was it PJs?) each Christmas and even though she is married and a mom, she still looks forward to it each year. One of my family's favorite Christmas gifts was the box of homemade candy and cookies we received from my sister's mother-in-law each year. She would start making these in November and everyone who knew her liked this tradition. We used to send out a Christmas letter each year but we stopped it when eliminating most of our Christmas card list a few years back. So some traditions have come and gone over time while others remain and go to the next generation. My daughter serves the same kind of hor'dourve and dessert "meal" on Christmas Eve to her family.

My son has spent Passover and one night of Hannakuh with his Jewish friend, when we were living in the same town. It helps him to understand the Jewish foundations of our Christian faith.

I'm looking forward to reading the traditions other families do each season. I'll be peeking in to other blogs to see or you can comment here.