Nostalgia
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Fruit Turkeys!
I don’t consider myself a terribly nostalgic person. But I live with a few Uber-Nostalgics (I coined that term). So I try to be sensitive.
Fruit Turkeys: The Minimalist Year
Like so many of you we are limiting our in-person interactions this holiday season, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy reminiscing about our favorite holiday traditions and maybe we’ll even create new ones! Since having kids I’ve come to realize that it isn’t about the “WOW” factor of the tradition as much as it is about the consistency of the tradition. Think back to what you remember about holidays as a child. What stands out to me from my childhood Christmases are: 1. Gobs of tinsel on our lopsided fresh cut trees and 2. Lifesaver “books” that we kids received each year. Leading up to Christmas Day there were a few gifts under the tree and my siblings and I would gather round, shaking and squeezing to try to guess what was under the paper. But after we went to bed on Christmas Eve our parents would put out ALL the gifts that they had gotten for us. So on Christmas morning it looked (to me) like Santa’s sleigh had exploded in the living room! When we visited my grandparents for Christmas, the first thing my brother would do was to run into their house and look for the little cardboard, light up fireplace that they put out every year. After Grandpa passed away and Grandma moved into the nursing home, she gave that little fireplace to my brother. It’s his cherished decoration now. I mention these because they are only meaningful to me. They don’t have any WOW Factor. But these are the memories that stir nostalgia in my heart. That’s what I try to keep in mind when I celebrate holidays with my own family. It’s not the expense of the decorations, or even that they are worthy of a magazine spread. Instead, it’s pulling the same quirky ornaments out of the boxes year after year. It’s baking the same kinds of cookies and watching the same cheesy Christmas movies.
Fruit Turkey Extraordinaire!
Fruit Turkey Rainbow
Not to neglect Thanksgiving! We have some sweet traditions associated with Thanksgiving. We start by watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV. Mid-morning we head to my in-law’s house where we continue to watch the parade. Grandma also provides the necessary fresh fruits for the kids to make fruit turkeys. Sometimes they make one or two big fruit turkeys and sometimes they make individual little turkeys. Grandma always makes her signature family recipe for stuffing which features the secret ingredient of cinnamon! And for the last 5 years or so, she’s made Mac and cheese! She uses Martha Stewart’s recipe and it is SO good! Grandma and Grandpa also bake their turkey in their brick, wood-fired oven <mouth watering>. Most of what is remarkable about Thanksgiving is the unremarkable—spending the day with loved ones, enjoying delicious food, taking a break from our daily work.
Fruit Turkey: The Cooperative Edition
As I write this and reflect on the wonderfully mundane blessings of my life, I catch myself as I recognize the privilege of my mundane life. I’m not wealthy but I want for nothing. I not only have a beautiful, functional, and sound home, but I have loving parents next door and in-laws in the neighboring town. I have a vast support network. As my children enjoy the blessings of traditions I think of the kids who don’t have a home. They don’t have a single ornament to unbox year after year. They don’t get to eat Martha Stewart’s Mac and cheese or cinnamon stuffing. Oh that I would never elevate my traditions over the care and comfort of others; that my eyes would never be blind to the needs around me!
What are your favorite traditions? The quirkier the better!
Family Selfie!
Grandma and Grandpa’s light up fireplace. My brother loved this little decoration and looked forward to it every year!