I love the traditions.
Tradition....it is the glue that holds one generation to the next.
A
young mother is preparing a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner.
Her daughter watches with interest as the mother slices off the ends of the turkey before placing it in the roasting pan.
The young girl asks her mother why she did this.
The mother pauses for a moment and then says, "You know, I'm not sure. This is the way I always saw my mother prepare a turkey. Let's call Grandma and ask her."
So, she phones her mother and asks why they always slice the ends off the turkey before roasting.
The Grandmother thinks for a moment and then says, "You know, I'm not sure why either. This is just the way I always saw MY mother prepare a turkey."
Now the two women are very curious, so they pay a visit to the great-grandmother in the nursing home.
"You know when we prepare a turkey," they explain, "we always slice off the ends before roasting. Why is that?"
The old woman replies, "I don't know why YOU do it, but I never had a roasting pan that was long enough."
Her daughter watches with interest as the mother slices off the ends of the turkey before placing it in the roasting pan.
The young girl asks her mother why she did this.
The mother pauses for a moment and then says, "You know, I'm not sure. This is the way I always saw my mother prepare a turkey. Let's call Grandma and ask her."
So, she phones her mother and asks why they always slice the ends off the turkey before roasting.
The Grandmother thinks for a moment and then says, "You know, I'm not sure why either. This is just the way I always saw MY mother prepare a turkey."
Now the two women are very curious, so they pay a visit to the great-grandmother in the nursing home.
"You know when we prepare a turkey," they explain, "we always slice off the ends before roasting. Why is that?"
The old woman replies, "I don't know why YOU do it, but I never had a roasting pan that was long enough."
These women all had something in common...the way they prepared the turkey. Even though the reason (for cutting the ends off) became non-existent after one generation; the next simply followed because it brought an identity and a comfort that "I come from something of value."
As a child, my family always opened Christmas presents on Christmas eve after my father read the Christmas story. Thus, with my own children we have followed in the same manner. My children all think it is silly to wait until Christmas morning, but that is simply because they value "tradition."
Christmas is celebrating the birth of Christ and by sharing gifts and love with one another, we take note of the great love that was shared with us some 2,000 years ago. Traditions pass this message; an enduring one for all generations.
I have a red "you are special" plate that is used to celebrate birthdays in our house (another tradition). On Christmas Eve after we open gifts, we simply have cake and sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus. An open spot sits at our table with the red plate sitting for Jesus.
Our girls received an ornament each year as they grew. Upon marriage, I have handed that box of their ornaments to them to hang on their Christmas tree.
I sigh with utmost gratefulness for the traditions handed down to me and new ones created with my girls....they create a sense of belonging....belonging to the One that created family and love.
Traditions celebrate who we are and where we have come from.
May your Christmas envelope you with the love of that tiny babe; celebrate His goodness, maybe revive that which you loved as a child? Ah, yes....mom made caramel rolls on Christmas morning....it really isn't the rolls, but the connection to mom that lives on. :)
I have learned the value of tradition.
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