Are Traditions Real?

It's coming up to Easter again, gee time does pass quickly sometimes. Anyway, it has got me thinking about what I do, how I spend my time and celebrate this momentous occasion. What did I do as a kid? What's changed?

Family traditions are funny things. If you join a family at such an occasion and they're trying something different that year it is quite often taken as something which they will do every year. What do we do when we find out that this is not right or when a tradition is changed. Do we buck up and want to stick with what we had or do we embrace the new ideas, the idea of new traditions?

 

When I was a kid I remember going to a Tenebrae Service on the Thursday night. Everybody would come and it was a great time. When it stopped, I didn't know what to do. Is it still Easter if we don't have the Tenebrae Service? Another thing we would do is get up at the crack of dawn to drive the 50 minutes to the nearest Dawn Service on the Sunday morning in the next town over. When I left home for the first time I remember coming back to go to that Dawn Service, as I didn't want to let it go.

Later I remember spending some of Easter time with friends instead of just family. Of going to a different dawn service where I was able to invite others along. Now, we have a new thing we do every Easter. We go camping, well in a caravan park around the place somewhere. We meet new people every year, we celebrate and remember with different people every year, but no matter where we are, we are with family. Our family in Christ.

Recently I've been thinking about what kind of new traditions I might like to start up. I don't have a family of my own or anything like that but what's to say that we cannot start up a new tradition anyway? Of maybe putting something on to invite others along to. The thing is, it doesn't really matter what we do at Easter as long as we remember what it's really about, and celebrate that, not losing it amongst everythings else.

Why do we cling to those things which we know, the false security we find in order and traditions? I would like to suggest that we remember the times which we have had with such things, the fun, the laughter, or the solemnity, that the occasion just doesn't seem quite right unless you do it that way. That is until you actually try something new! I challenge you to actually think about what you do, who you spend your time with, and where you go. Would you like to change anything?

So, anyway, amongst all that is above my question to you is what are your traditions, and why do you keep them?

God Bless.

Goodbye

I don't know about you, but I really don't like saying goodbye. The way it gets awkward because you know it's going to be the last time, at least for a while that you're going to see this person. How you don't quite know when to let go, whether to hold on for longer or just get it over with quick. The way it actually signals that it is the end of something and so you can't quite hold onto it the same way any longer.

Most of the time I like to just slip away un-noticed and avoid the goodbyes altogether. This is partly due to my dislike of attention and partly because it brings everything into attention.

Just recently I was 'surprised' with a surprise farewell that some of my friends organised for me and I am ashamed to say that I wasn't very good about it. At least at first anyway. Having just been greated by a room full of smiling faces my response was sorry, the surprise didn't work. My natural reaction to anything slightly surprising or which catches me off guard is defence. So automatic reaction is BARRIERS UP! DEFEND! Don't let anyone see what is actually going on inside.

It is only afterwards that I actually realise what has already been done though and it is too late to alter things or make an apology without bringing it all up again. But more than this my focus was on myself at that moment in time and not on those others in the room. My friends whom God has blessed into my life. That they had taken the time out to come and sneak in to surprise me. That they had organised this for me. I felt so very loved and overwhelmed at the same time that I could do nothing more than hide it and hurl unkind words.

So, I am sorry. And I am very thankful. Please forgive me. I feel very blessed to know that you consider me a friend and are willing to put in the time and effort to see me before I leave. I pray now that I too may be a worthy friend to you, that I too may be able to put in that time and effort to keep up with each of you even while I am absent.

God Bless.