Christmas Traditions are called Traditions for a reason.

We assume that whatever our circumstances, everything leading up to December 25th will be the same- the only thing that changes ( in theory ) are the participants and the roles they play.

Of course, if you’re one of the lucky people new things come your way and you get to do something different.

I’ll be honest, when I was forced into the position of having to redefine my entire life and that included how I celebrated the holidays I was less then enchanted with the prospect.

It was scary, it was stressful but in the end it was an adventure into the dark and unknown and I am wired by nature  to do that anyway.

After all, I travel alone, I decided that working in a Funeral Home was something I wanted to do- so against the odds I did it. I played lead guitar in rock bands before it was common for women to do that. I even rode motorcycles.

So when I wanted to find a new way to approach the holidays it was hit and miss and then I found the inspiration to do things differently:

First of all, this is the first year I will be planning Christmas as a Grandma.

In March my first Grandchild was born and she was the inspiration for me to go into my memory vault and go over my Christmases  Past.

I hadn’t thought about saving those memories in any form until I realized I had some really cool stories and traditions that would be fun to recall- no necessarily repeat. But they were bitter and sweet and most important of all- funny.

That’s why I chose this Writing Challenge, it seemed like the best way to organize and share that.

My dog Hamish started out being a pet, a companion,  someone to take walks with and talk to when reaching out into the world and socializing was the farthest thing from my mind.

But I had a rough year before he came along and I was shutting down.

I had a pretty low opinion of myself when I brought him home at 10 weeks old and in small ways he changed that.

One day Hamish was walking around the house with a blanket over his head and when  I took it off he was wagging his tail like crazy, so I put it back over his head and he insisted on going for his walk like that.

We were only walking half a block or two in those days because he was just a puppy but it was far enough for my neighbors to see him.

And if they were outside, most of them wanted to pet Hamish or talk to him because they said:

” That is the happiest dog I have ever met in my life. ”

It dawned on me- I was depressed, I was a wreck I was sullen and withdrawn and somehow I had done something right and raised a happy dog that knew how to have fun and liked meeting people.

I did that for Hamish and Hamish is the reason I found out I was an okay human being after all.

 

So what am I going to do differently?

I’m going to read ghost stories by lamplight with a nice cup of tea.

I’m going to create art- either through baking and cooking or even through drawing. I’ve never been good at creating visual art but who knows maybe this time I’ll learn to be good at it.

I’m going to do one of these things every night through December.

I want to feel the chill and walk in the fog that sometimes happens in December around the Puget Sound.

I don’t want to just walk through the Christmas Season and follow a script where I know the lines and there are no surprises.

I want to live it.

amm

Made In Australia Advent Calendar: Breaking Traditions