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Holiday Traditions 12/19/2010 4:38:58 PM
Grandma is 97 years old and living in her memories which are vibrant at this time of year. Old decor made by her own youthful hands brings a smile to her face as she remembers her husband's indulgence during Christmas.
There are those same happy memories for me as I gently hang ornaments created by my children more than two decades ago. Joyful events that were all but forgotten during hot summer days peek out from the shadows of my mind as I set up my holiday traditions once again.
Lately, there has been that old familiar longing to go back to the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, sink my feet in white sand and renew under tropical sunlight as it kisses my winter-weathered skin. I love the Caribbean and experience that pull every so often. It makes me wonder what the draw to that location is for me. Granted, the beaches are beautiful and the scenery is breathtaking. That should be enough, right? But there is something more, something that resonates in my soul when I am sailing in those waters.
Was it something from my past? Is there tradition there that pulls me to it the way the ornaments on my tree pull me to years as a young mother? I think there is something in the sea, whether sailing on top of it or swimming beneath it's surface, that is familiar and comfortable.
As I peruse images of the Caribbean and think about my pine tree lit with brightly colored bulbs, I think God must decorate his oceans for the seasons as well.
Christmas colors found in deep the deep green of tropical foilage, parking white sands dotted with crimson crabs and lavendar sand dollars. Even stars are set atop the ornamentation as starfish in various colors adorn the ocean floor.
Perhaps it is this abundance of beauty and color of the holiday season bequeathed from God that pulls me back to these waters. Perhaps tradition steeped in something deep within makes me yearn for history that occurred in those waters. Perhaps tradition is really just a physical acknowedgement of our own recent Deja vu moments. I wish you peace and joy as you embrace your traditions and create memories that will join you annually as you revisit them this time of year.
