TGIF and Traditions

Let the post Halloween melancholies begin…
I love fall, but once Halloween is over, it is a short skip to Thanksgiving and then a quick jump to the holiday rush.
Due to “Moving extravaganza 2007” I was unable to neither put up any of my Halloween décor nor carve a single pumpkin. It almost feels like my favorite holiday has passed me by.
Thanksgiving was the last holiday I spent with my beloved Grandmother at her house before she passed, and ironically my Grandfather passed three years later, 3 days before Turkey Day. To this day I still get teary and just want the day to be over with. I have plenty to be thankful for, but I adored my grandparent's more.
Then comes Christmas; there is comfort in the smells of the Italian food, the Christmas tree, the fireplace, my Aunt Betty’s cheesecake. I never “feel” like Christmas until I am with my mom. Christmas is her holiday. I love the holiday, I even collect Hallmark ornaments, but the two days of celebration do not exist for me, until I am with my mama. The 24 hours of “A Christmas Story” on television, everyone congregated in my parent’s basement for way too much food. Peace on earth and good will toward men…
Which brings us to...Easter, which belongs to my dad and his parents, the “grandest” of all reasons to celebrate. I am very reverent during this holiday, but the chocolate bunnies and pastel colors are not my thing. We are saved, have a basket. I jest, but I do not understand. The tradition is dinner at my grandparent’s house. My father always gives us the reminder of why this holiday is the most important of all.
Fourth of July, Memorial Day Labor day belong to the tradition of honoring those who keep and kept us safe and summer bbq’s with family. Red, White and Blue and being at the lake.
However, Halloween is mine. Not one negative emotion to be found. There are chicken fajita’s and strawberry margarita’s (why Mexican? I have no idea), I light candles for my loved ones who have passed over. I generally invite friends and family over for dinner and pass out way too much candy. In my house, there is never an excuse for not wearing a costume. I have told the girls the true history of Halloween and hope I have taught them some appreciation for the true meaning. Those are my traditions. Someday, I hope to have a child that says “It isn’t Halloween until I see my mom” or even better “oh my Lord, my mother is already decorating again”
I have already started planning how to decorate the front yard next year. I am going to make my very own haunted cemetery…
There is amazing family history to be found in our traditions and the warmth of where we come from.

“What an enormous magnifier is tradition! How a thing grows in the human memory and in the human imagination, when love, worship, and all that lies in the human heart, is there to encourage it”-Thomas Caryle

“Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to that arrogant oligarchy who merely happen to be walking around.”-G.K. Chesterton

Linus: I've learned there are three things you don't discuss with people: religion, politics and the Great Pumpkin.

Lucy scoops out the innards of the pumpkin] Linus: Ohh. You didn't tell me you were gonna kill it!
Linus: [to Sally as she walks away with everyone else] Hey, aren't you going to stay to greet the Great Pumpkin? It won't be long now. If the Great Pumpkin comes, I'll still put in a good word for you. [Realizes what he just said] Linus: Good grief! I said "if"! I meant "when" he comes! [Calmly]
Linus: I'm doomed. One little slip like that could cause the Great Pumpkin to pass you by.
Charlie Brown: I got a rock.