It's a Tradition!!

Family traditions counter alienation and confusion. They help us define who we are; they provide something steady, reliable and safe in a confusing world.
       ~ Susan Lieberman

     This past weekend was Easter. I was struck this morning by how many photos had been posted by various people on Facebook showing children hunting outside for eggs. From the front lawn of the White House to my own front yard, egg hunts with children were held all over. It has become a part of how we celebrate Easter. The symbolism of the egg, and the "new life" it represents, fits well with the Christian Easter message.

My grandson Sam, age 2, hunting Easter eggs

My grandson Will, age 1, hunting Easter eggs

My granddaughter Addie, age "almost 4", hunting Easter eggs

     I looked up Easter traditions online this morning and found that coloring eggs goes way back, originating in the Alsace region of Germany, which is now included as a part of France. Eggs were dyed with natural colors such as boiling them with onion skins, and the resulting colors were seen as representing the colors of spring. Rabbits and hares breed easily and often, and as such were seen as symbols of both fertility and new life. The Easter Bunny is a way of including that symbolism into the holiday and dates back into the 1600's. There is also some reference to pagan celebrations by those wacky Saxons in northern Europe, who had a tradition dating back to the second century BC of celebrating a festival in honor of their goddess of fertility and spring, Eastre. Early Christian missionaries to the region incorporated some of the pagan customs into a new celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Thus, the Easter Bunny hiding colored eggs!

     This all got me thinking about all the traditions of our holidays. Everything from birthday cakes with candles to green beer on St. Patrick's Day to fireworks on the 4th of July to all the traditions of Christmas and Hanukkah. I love them all... and have tended to go overboard with them in my own family. But there is a reason I do it-- tradition within a family brings a sense of belonging and stability to that family. My boys, as children, knew exactly what would happen for each holiday. They knew that when they got up on St. Patrick's Day there would be green sugar in the sugar bowl and green milk in the refrigerator. They knew we would have oyster stew on Christmas Eve. They knew we would have a decorated cake with candles on it for their birthday celebration. And they loved it. I have seen them copy some of our traditions in their own families. And incorporated new traditions brought by their wives or created new traditions within their homes. And they still come back looking for Mom's traditions here... which warms my heart!

     Tradition has also been given a bit of a bad reputation, and has been seen as a stumbling block to personal growth and freedom. We have felt the pain of breaking traditional roles for gender and race. Being seen as "different", no matter what the reason, can be very painful indeed. Following tradition for its own sake can stifle creativity and innovation.  And what of those who don't have groups that include them in holiday traditions... those who have lost that sense of belonging to a family? Being on the outside on a holiday can be a very lonely experience.

     Here is what I think:  I think that following traditions is a good thing if it creates a sense of belonging and love. If it helps build a link between generations within a family, and that family feels closer because of it, that's a good thing. If the traditions bring a child security as well, that's even better. Creating new traditions to fit new families or new circumstances is a good thing too. Celebrations can bring us together and that is a good thing!