Holiday Traditions-Who Needs Them?

Life observation for the week....all those years ya try to instill "holiday traditions" into your kids and it's like pulling teeth to get them to do it. Now they return home from college and are just all over ya with those same holidays traditions.....it's like pulling teeth to get me to do them. lol! ~Sherri

Christmas 2009

We are in the middle of the college invasion.  The girls are back home on Winter Break, and their friends are beginning to swoop down on the house.  Oh how I love these times!  The house has been so quiet with everyone gone in one way or another.  The only noise we hear is Stealth Kitty’s daily run through the house at lightening speed, and Yankee giving his one bark to remind us that we have left him outside longer than 2 minutes, and it’s time for his nap.

This has been a busy season for work.  I’ve travelled, and put in some serous overtime, which helps me not think about how we are now premature empty nesters, but it also limits my ability to  “make the house cozy."

Pretty much all the Christmas decorating I did this year was November 29th right after Joshua’s 5K when the girls were going on and on about Christmas “we do this and we do that,” so I went downstairs and dug out the 20 boxes full of Christmas Cheer, and pulled out......

1. One prelit Christmas tree which we decorated with White House Ornaments and red white and blue ornaments collected over the last 25 years.

2.  One beloved Nativity set we purchased during our time overseas when the Newmanettes were still debuting into this world

Photo taken by Josh

 

3.  One the Dickens Village we received as a wedding gift 23 years ago. 

4.  One stairwell garland.

A few tzatkes, and some candles.  It was enough for me to build up a sweat, so I feel good about my efforts.  I emptied about 6 of the 20 boxes and the other remain almost untouched.

The live tree didn’t happen this year, the Dining room was not transformed into the room of the Merry Feast;  The angel for the lawn remains in the basement, but luckily, Brad decorated the outside while I was gone and it looks nice and festive.

Who’s got the energy to do it all?  Who wants to? Josh was always after me during this time of year to bake cookies, decorate, put on the music.  Now that he's gone, there’s no youthful energy in the house, there’s a sadness even four years out that just settles on us and zaps our energy.  There are more times when we quietly wipe away tears since this is the time of year that families around us are bubbling over with sports award ceremonies, musical concerts, and family gatherings.  

It does help having the girls home.  I asked them what they wanted to do, and I expect their schedules to be full of friends, but they respond,  “Mom, we gotta make the cutout cookies,”  “Mom we gotta watch our Christmas movies,”  “Mom, when are we going out driving to look at the lights?” “Mom, we gotta go to Christmas Eve service,” 

Traditions are so very important to them!  They bring stability, remind them of happy times, and keeps our family close.  Oftentimes, the grief books suggest you change traditions.  Come up with new ones to help ease the pain of the holidays without your loved one, but we have found that any attempt to change our traditions, sends everyone into a frenzy; it’s the traditions we instilled into our family fabric that bring the strength and peace our family leans on to get through another season without Josh. 

It may take a jump start from my girls to get me going, but it’s an effort well worth it.

For those of you who have an empty stocking at the chimney; an empty chair at the table, and a hole in your heart this season, may your traditions and loved ones bring you peace and joy this Christmas Season.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  Luke 2:11

Hugs,

Sherri