Rockville High School Senior Diary: Traditions

Every family has their own traditions that they dread or look forward to every year, especially around the holiday season.

For many, the holiday season starts after Halloween, but for those who hold back their desire to blast christmas tunes and smother their bed in holiday pillows, the holiday festivities start on the notorious Black Friday.

Others, such as myself, are left to sit on our couches in a turkey coma from the night before.

In my family, we have no real thanksgiving traditions. Every year, it’s Thanksgiving at my grandmother’s house with most of the family. Those who made the right move to live across the country don’t always make it for Thanksgiving.

For those who do, it’s always nice to catch up, crack some jokes, and throw some peas when my grandma isn’t looking. This year, we changed it up a bit and along with the peas, we threw olives too.

After dinner, it’s time to celebrate the birthdays that passed since the last time we were together. With an assortment of gluten free, dairy free, and fun free desserts for the cousins, we sing in multiple different keys to the tune of Happy Birthday.

But the fun doesn’t end there. With six children, plus spouses, it is too many stocking for my grandma to fill, so our newest tradition is a secret santa for the adults.

Magically, my dad and my uncle have picked each other, three years in a row. I mean it would have nothing to do with the infamous clip-lights and Wiggles CDs that have been showing up at every family gathering since the secret santa started.

I quite honestly don’t know how my grandma expects everyone to follow the $3 limit because very few things are less than $5 now. And anything that comes close to a decent gift is normally much higher priced than that.

So yet again, the clip-lights and CDs will appear in their stockings, as well as some other less-desired items. Even with a limit of $3 per person, the enjoyment they get out of those items is priceless.

The Christmas decorations go up the day after Thanksgiving and the house immediately smells like vanilla and pine trees with a hint of eggnog from all of the Starbucks drinks that my mom and I buy.

Christmas villages dawn our shelves in the basement and the stockings are hung by the automatic fireplace with some care, I guess. The extra room that houses the piano that is more out of tune than my family is when they sing, is cluttered with boxes, bags, and broken lights that we just bought last year. I think they did it on purpose.

When Christmas finally comes to town, we have our family gathering on Christmas eve where we make s’mores in the fireplace and stuff ourselves into a cookie coma. But none of that comes before what seems like an endless series of winter concerts. I enjoy playing in them, but my brother, who sits in the audience loathing his life, would much rather be home.

Christmas day normally starts around 11am after my mom picks up my nana to watch us open presents. She hides the presents at her house, so if it was not obvious before that Santa did not come in the middle of the night, it is now.

Brunch with the family wouldn’t be the same without loud family stories and of course, more cookies. Christmas dinner is always put off until the next day because my aunt stuffs us all with egg casserole and monkey bread. Plus my other aunt has finally stopped complaining about rushing around to different houses on Christmas Day. She even drunkenly made us make a pact that it would be on Dec. 26 from now on.

So when Dec. 26 rolls around, my dad is up at 4am cookies the vegetarian, gluten free, dairy free, and of course, fun free dishes for dinner.

Oddly enough, traditions bring families together as a way of saying “no matter what, we still love you.” Through the good times and the bad, traditions are grounding and stabilizing. They give families great memories to hang on to even in the midst of chaos.

Even during a stressful week, especially this time of year, I know that I can always look forward to being with my crazy, gluten- free, dairy-free, but definitely not fun- free family.