Traditions and Roots

When I was a little girl my grandparents told us that whoever saw the first robin each year, drew a picture of it, and mailed it to them would get a nickel. My cousins and I were so diligent, looking for robins because we wanted to win that nickel. My father continued the tradition with my kids and their cousins. Now that they are all adults, my brother and I are back in the contest – all’s fair! It’s still a nickel and the truth be told, I think that who ever sends in a picture gets a nickel. The point is that it is a tradition. It’s something we look forward to and enjoy. As you can see, my drawing skills haven’t improved since the first time I sent in my picture, but I am going to get that nickel this year. It helps that I live farther south than the cousins and my brother.

Yesterday I had a conversation about this with my dad and he talked about this tradition as being roots. It’s about the connections we have. The connection could be to family, to friends, to a place, to an event, and the key is that it’s roots. It’s something that connects us to others and to a part of ourselves. Roots connect us deep down and help us to remember what is important.

Each year we put up our Christmas tree there are certain ornaments that have to go up. There’s a bell that is hung in the doorway to the living room that the taller people in our family ring with their heads each time they walk in. Every year I take out the Christmas Ho Ho Ho shirt that my oldest son wore his first Christmas. And, every year I say, “And it was too big for you!”, which is funny because it looks so tiny.

Every year when the buds start to come out on the trees I comment about how much more green it is each day as you look down the street. My kids used to say, “We know, Mom!” in that way that teenagers do, however if I don’t say it now, they miss it. They might make good-hearted fun of me, but it’s tradition.

Several years ago I instituted Sunday Night Dinner. Everyone knows that whoever is around is invited and welcome to drop in. We have had cousins schedule the latest flight out on Sunday so they could be here for SND. For me, it is a tradition and a time for connection. We have interesting conversations (some are really weird), laugh a lot, and connect!

I love traditions. I love the connection. What are your traditions? Do you have traditions that you weren’t even aware of? What traditions would you like to start?