This morning, as I was trying to hold in my excitement for my trip home for Thanksgiving- as I still have quite a few projects and exams standing in my way before I head South, I was admiring all of the beautiful Christmas decorations that have been set up in my sorority house. The garland on our big staircase is my favorite. It is so beautiful and the lights sparkle, especially at night. As I was looking at all of the decorations, I was thinking to myself, "Isn't it too early to have Christmas decorations up? It is only November 7th. It's not even Thanksgiving yet!"
The Johnson family does not decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving- it is our tradition! I then started to think about traditions. What does the word tradition mean to you? Do you have any traditions? My family has had many traditions throughout the years. Ever since I can remember, I have always enjoyed having traditions and sharing them with my beloved family. The earliest tradition I can think of is going to the Shrine Circus with my Nana and Grandy every year. Though I was terrified of the clowns, I loved to ride the elephants, get my face painted and of course, get spoiled by Grandy. Here are some other traditions I can remember:
Spending Thanksgiving at the Circle Bar Ranch
This was taken last Thanksgiving at the Circle Bar Ranch
-Easter Egg hunts at the Farm in Wills Point
-Decorating turkey cookies with Nana
-Matching Christmas dresses with my sister, Abigail (and sometimes Mom, too- embarrassing, I know)
-Sitting at the "kids" table with all of my cousins at family get-togethers at Grandmommie and Granddaddy's house
-Baking pumpkin bread for all of our teachers (usually around 10pm the night before school let out for the Holiday break)
-Going back to school shopping with Nana before each year in High School
-Looking at the Christmas lights on Lake Worth with Nana and Grandy
As you can tell, not only was I spoiled by my grandparents growing up, I was used to many traditions, especially around the Holidays. When looking back on these great memories of these traditions that I grew up knowing, I realized that it wasn't really about what we were doing, it was about the people that I shared those moments with.
This was a great realization to have, as I have been pretty disappointed about not spending Thanksgiving at the Ranch this year for the first time in many years. My Grandaddy (Dad's father) just turned 87 years old this week, and unfortunately has suffered a stroke. After the loss of his wife, my Grandmommie, things have been increasingly difficult for him. We decided as a family to stay in Fort Worth and celebrate Thanksgiving there this year, where Granddaddy can comfortably attend. I'm not going to lie, I have been totally bummed about not going to the Ranch--- it was breaking tradition! But after thinking today, all of those traditions would be meaningless without the people I spent them with. So though we are breaking a tradition this year with Thanksgiving, I still have the incredible blessing of spending the holiday with my amazing family. This gives me a complete new outlook on traditions. I cannot wait to see the family in Fort Worth and celebrate Thanksgiving at home and create a NEW tradition.
This is Me, Grandaddy and my Dad this past Christmas
What family Holiday traditions do you have? Think about all of the wonderful people that you share those traditions with. This Thanksgiving, give thanks for those special people. Thank the Lord for all of the blessings that have been in your life.
"For every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights." James 1:17
Rica! So glad you're a blogger now. Love that verse, we serve a good God! How evident His blessings are, especially around the holiday season.
ReplyDelete