In order to carry on tradition with strength, we must experience loss, and in order to experience loss, we may carry on traditions. When you have specific traditions whether it is with your family, your heritage, or your religion, you must carry them on even with loss. The loss of my grandmother was a burden on my family. Although it was heartbreaking and tough, we continued on traditions in her honor. In the end, it was what helped us cope the most as a family. The summer of 2014 was the summer I lost my grandmother. My grandmother was the type of person to match your personality with a Disney character and pretend to trade you for money. After her death, there were various traditions to continue. In example, there were many birthdays. On birthdays, it was her specific tradition to make you feel like you were 5 years old again. In the mail, you would receive a card. The card would most likely be a cheesy, homemade-looking card that you would think was made by a family of clowns. Inside would be a hilarious saying reminding you that you were actually getting older and so on.
“And a pinch to grow an inch! You could hear her say in the back of your mind. But this birthday, as you felt the excitement grow from the bottom of your stomach and the smile form on your face, you would realize that her annual cards would no longer come into the mail. Knowing the reality was almost earth shattering as you had to learn how to continue on with your first birthday without her and her humor. Christmas and Thanksgiving were her holidays. Her and Gramps would come out from California, show up at the door, and everyone’s spirits would instantly become lifted with such joy.
“Happy holidays!” She would exclaim as she pulls you in for one of her tight, loving hugs. She would almost always wear a festive holiday sweater whether it had a turkey or a polar bear on it. That Christmas, when it was only grandpa that showed up everyone tried to keep it bright and cheery, but it just wasn’t the same. Every Thanksgiving and ever Christmas we have family dinners. It’s traditions that have happened in my family, as well as others, for as long as we can remember. Family comes out and celebrates the fact that we all love each other and are grateful for one another. So this year, when everyone was gloomy instead of bright and cheery, my mom decided to make a speech.
“Loss is hard especially when it was a family member. Traditions are hard to carry on during the time of loss. We have lost our dear Julie, I know. But instead of sulking, we should become one as a family and carry on these traditions in her name. It’s what she would want. It’s what anyone would want if their family and friends lost them. Here’s to JuJu and everything she accomplished. Everyone she loved. Everyone that loved her. Cheers!” By then, everyone’s faces were soaking with the wet, salty tears that had fallen from our now glossy eyes. Of course we all smiled and applauded my mother for her marvelous, powerful speech. It was then that we realized we had lost a loved one, but we didn’t lost everyone. It made us stronger as a family. To this day, we carry on the traditions as a family and in her name for we know it would make her absolutely happy.
In conclusion, traditions must be carried on. Love and loss may seem like two different things, but in the end they go hand in hand. You love the ones you’ve lost, and you lose the ones you’ve once loved. But being there for eachother as a family, is one of the most important things in life. No matter how silly or dumb a tradition may seem, it was once important to somebody you once loved. In their name, carry it on together. Never lose the love for traditions and your family.
