By: Jennifer Richardson Holt
What is the first thing that you think of when I say the word tradition? Now hear me out, and I beg of you to not prepare your eyes for a massive roll too quickly. I know this time of year we think of lots of customary things that have to do with the holidays but that is not necessarily what I mean. There are all sorts of legacies that get scattered about both this season and any time of year. Now, me being from the American South, I don’t know if we tend to have more of a devotion to tradition than other locales, (which is probably good and bad on occasion), but I can say this: the dictionary did give “the traditions of the American South” as an example of the use of the word so, judging by that, we may have, at very least, a firm grasp on the concept. I guess I am true to my region in this that I absolutely adore a good tradition. Please note I said a good tradition. I shall refrain from criticizing any custom in particular in hopes of avoiding offending any reader however, I think we all know the ones of which I speak. Today, I am going to revel in a few traditions that I hold near and dear, some holiday, some not. Also, I will share a few that I have learned about along the way that I feel deserve a mention. This examination of handed down convention may make for interesting reading. Then again maybe I should have let you finish up that eye roll that you might have mustered in the beginning. We shall see.
Let us begin with some traditions that are most assuredly near and dear in my neck of the woods. I am not going to ramble on about some magnolias wrapped in holly type of southern holiday tradition right now like you may think but I am going to tell a little tale about college football. This likely isn’t the passed down event that you were expecting, however my college of choice has some really fantastic traditions. While due to my own bias I could easily travel all the rabbit trails exhorting all of said customs, but I shall attempt to limit myself only to one. This university, before every game, allows an eagle, usually a massive golden eagle but occasionally an appropriately patriotic bald eagle, circle its stadium of nearly ninety thousand people in flight. As someone who has experienced this many times firsthand, I am certain of one thing, whatever words I use here will fall pitifully short. To watch an almost seven-foot wingspan circle a crowd and sail to a stop at mid field is downright majestic. This has only taken place for around two decades, but the power of the moment makes it feel as though it has been done for ten times as long. Perhaps this is my bias talking, but to watch that magnificent bird effortlessly soar has on many occasions merited a tear in the eye or at the very least goosebumps. I wish I could share the moment with everyone. If at all possible, I ask you to take a moment to attempt to visualize it. Picture the massive eagle wings brushing just above the tops of awestruck fans heads. If you don’t think it to be at least a bit impressive then, well…mark it down. I have no words.
In a change of pace and an attempt to not overly focus on what some may find a tradition a tad less meaningful now I want to mention a few that are probably smaller in scale but possibly with a more measurable personal depth. My husband told me of an ornament that his Granny used to always put on theitr tree. It was a little blue Jack Frost figurine. He said that this is what instilled his love of blue as a Christmas color. He and I argue most years that blue is not a traditional Christmas color. Fear not, I did agree to some of our very first trees having a scheme of silver and blue because I can understand a nice wintery theme. But honestly, he didn’t tell me his reasoning for loving blue as a Christmas color,(I always assumed he just loved it because blue is his favorite color) until just this year. It was only a few days ago that he told me that his love of the azure shade for the season came from the little Jack Frost that his Granny, who no longer celebrates the season on this mortal coil, so adamantly included. I had no idea. Next year, I am going to try to put a tad more blue somewhere in the décor, both for him, and for Granny.
There are other more trivial examples. My family always has pizza on Christmas Eve just for a change to the palate before the full blown Southern meal the next day. I have a nativity set that I remember putting out as a child that my mother passed down to me which will be a legacy I will pass to my daughter when she is an adult with her own home. To go back to football traditions that are countless especially here in the south that will trickle down from generation to generation. But such legacies don’t have to be this time of year. We all know of those special tidbits that may not mean anything to anyone but us, but they are done every year, time and time again. They are done because it is what we have always done. They are what we feel keeps the best of the past alive and well in the present and will carry that best into perpetuity. If we can be sure of very little in our lives, if we can rely on the carrying on of traditions, we can count on at least a few regularly scheduled bright spots along the way.
Prose and Possibilities 
That was another good blog and reminds me of my Christas traditions. My Mother always made fruit cakes and the last 2 years of her life, I helped her make them and do it every year now. That was a wonderful memory for me and always think of her when I make them.
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