Traditions are a complex subject for me. I don't mean that in a bad way. I did not grow up in the U.S so back home, we are all about tradition and most everything revolves around it. A lot of it revolving around food. Traditions and superstitions somehow become one and all you know is you do things some days or some ways because that is what your family always did.
Whether it is going to cemetery every year on day of the dead and partaking of a picnic "with" your departed loved ones (yes, that's a thing), eating twelve grapes at midnight on New Year's, having a blessing before a holiday meal in which everyone participates or waking up at 5 am Christmas Day to beat the crowds to the beach (yes, that's a thing as well) honoring your old family traditions is harder when you move to a new country and find that some of your old holidays don't exist here and you learn that there's a couple you didn't know about!
Although I respect people who move to this country and continue to live as though they are still in their country of origin, I have chosen to embrace and absorb the American culture while still honoring the values and traditions I grew up with. I will not get political because this is not the place or time for that but you are in America, therefore you speak English and you adjust yourself to this country not the other way around. Imagine a vinagrette, if you will, I choose to keep it emulsified rather than separated ;) that's how I find my middle ground.
I am very close to an amazing Southern family, my second family and I have been taken into their wings ever since I moved here. I have been part of their traditions for several years now and have learned from their own traditions. Here they get together and bake Christmas cookies in a similar manner that families make tamales for the Holiday back home. There are so many similarities and differences at the same time. This has allowed me to find a compromise between old and new and adjust my own traditions to who and where I am.
So, while I have learned to appreciate putting up Christmas after Thanksgiving instead of first Sunday in December ( like we used to do) or Ham for New Year's dinner instead of turkey and tamales, I still eat my 12 grapes for "good luck" and have gotten others partaking in it ! Of course my all time favorite family tradition that is nearest and dearest to my heart was staying up until midnight on Christmas and New Year's Eve so that everyone could give each other a hug each other once the clock struck twelve. It was so fun and sweet how everyone ( adults and children) would scramble around to make sure you didn't miss anyone. Those hugs are something really special and the greatest tradition of all!
oh I like the hugs tradition ... I've heard of the 12 grapes ... a colleague said she had to eat the 12 grapes and run around the block at midnight ... I definitely think the hugs would be safer where I live LOL ... When we were little my mom told us that in her daddy's house the first person to say "Merry Christmas Eve Gift" to you, you owed a gift to them ...So once us kids grew up and moved out we made it our Mission to continue the tradition ... Not all of the partners or spouses have really embraced the 3 am phone calls ... But the funniest time was when the alarm co called my brothers house at 2am and he just knew it was me and he answered the phone "Merry Christmas Eve Gift ... And sis you better have a real present for me this time"! The lady from the alarm company actually sputtered and hung up on him. Enjoyed the post! and I have to agree I like the paragraph spacing too!
ReplyDeleteThat's too funny! Thanks for the feedback :)
DeleteI wish I had some traditions. When I was a kid my brother and I had a pact to wake each other Christmas morning and run downstairs to the Christmas tree together - not allowed until we were both awake - and we would even practice the sprint down the stairs! That was cute. But I don't feel we really have any cultural ones in my family other than all getting together on the day.
ReplyDeleteI suppose we are started to make some traditions. With my husband's family we now have a "Masterchef invention challenge" each Christmas where there is a core ingredient (like lemons, or cheese) and everyone has to make a dish including that and then we try them all and judge. And since we are all fantasy buffs, if there is big fantasy movie release on Boxing Day (like all the Lord of the Rings or and the Hobbit movies) we all go together.
Thank you for tweaking your blog format to make it easier to read!
That challenge sounds like lots of fun! Spacing is my friend for sure. Thanks for reading!
DeleteEating 12 grapes in New Years... I've never heard that one but I kinda like it!! When I was young my parents always did breakfast in bed on birthdays, I wanted to keep that up, but hubby always gets up at the crack of dawn before I can even start to cook for him so that went out the window.. Lol... When young I had a tradition of hanging out with mom and dad watching dick Clark in New Years. Since he no longer does it that is also gone, so I'll try to make new traditions moving forward. Hubby and I took a cute "crazy faces while wearing Santa hats" photo last year which I now hope we will do every year.
ReplyDeleteSonya, that yearly pic would be fun to look back on! Yall must definitely do it again, thanks for reading!
DeleteSeriously, traditions are a big emotional tie with us! It's hard not to honor the traditions you grew up with--and super fun to try to make new ones that you hope will be as awesome as the ones you had! Being a newly wed--this is def. on our mind!
ReplyDeleteThey really are Kirtley! As newlyweds, I'm sure it's both fun and challenging to blend both sid s of tradition and make some of your own. Thanks for your comment!
Delete