Family traditions can be big the Thanksgiving meal or family reunions and traditions can be small saying grace before dinner or sharing a hug when parting. Simply put, a tradition is something that is done the same way over time.
The holidays we celebrate and the way we celebrate them are often traditions that have been handed down from generation to generation. Culture is the way a group of people collectively thinks, feels and acts.
We often think of countries, or regions of a country, as having a culture that is unique and different from the country or region next door. But families also have a culture, whether they intentionally set out to create one or not.
The things you do as a family, the values you hold and demonstrate to your children by your actions, and the daily, weekly, or annual rituals of family members all form a family culture that is unique to your family. Those habits we form together in a family can provide each family member with connection, comfort, and the security of being part of a like-minded group. Shared activities strengthen the connections between family members and provide a source of identity and feeling of belonging.
Traditions, and family culture, are also a way to pass along the values you hold dear to your children. When we form family traditions, we create opportunities to build connections within our family.
The things we do together regularly as a family- daily, weekly, or even annually — give children a sense of belonging. Daily traditions are small things you do each day to reinforce your family values and connection. A high-five as kids leave for the school bus. Or the commitment to sit and eat a meal together around the dinner table. Create a personalised content profile.
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Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Family traditions are experiences or activities that are passed down between generations. These traditions can be as unique and special as the family itself. In addition to being something to look forward to, traditions also establish a foundation for family values and serve as special bonding experiences.
Traditions can provide families with a sense of identity and belonging. They can inspire positive feelings and memories that family members can share. Family traditions also provide a sense of continuity across generations. They are a way of transferring the family's values, history, and culture from one generation to the next. Family traditions differ from everyday family routines, which also occur repeatedly, but lack the symbolic meaning that family rituals hold.
While family traditions carry a special significance for all family members involved, family routines are often basic activities that are necessary to keep the family unit functioning. A family dinner on Friday night may be part of the family routine, for example, whereas a family dinner at a favorite restaurant for Mom's birthday may be a tradition. Many families have traditions that endure for generations.
These special activities or events often generate fond memories that everyone cherishes and attempts to carry on. Some traditions relate to the family's heritage, like going to a cultural festival or cooking a meal from the "old country" on a certain day each year.
Others may have to do with special events, such as a pearl necklace that is passed down at each wedding. Still others are simply fun activities that family members enjoy repeating. For instance, a family full of baseball fans may make it a tradition to go to the stadium on opening day.
This tradition may have started with great-grandpa and continues to involve the youngest members of the family, becoming something they look forward to every year. People create and maintain family traditions because they bring meaning to celebrations and foster special bonds. More importantly, traditions create positive experiences and memories for everyone by nurturing a family's connection and giving them a sense of belonging.
Family traditions also help children understand who they are and what is important to the family to which they belong. Traditions create a connection for children that comes from feeling like they are part of something unique and extraordinary. Family traditions can even contribute to a child's self-esteem and enhance their well-being.
After all, children find comfort and security when things are predictable and consistent. Establishing and maintaining family traditions is a way for families to bond over shared experiences—a way for them to connect to one another and to their past. With rituals, it's often a case of less is more. The goal is to develop simple regular routines that keep the family interacting with each other. Basketball legend Bill Walton, for example, used to write inspiring quotes often taken from The Big Red Head's college coach, John Wooden on his kids' lunch bags every morning before they went off to school.
These types of regular rituals not only impart that coveted sense of security but also teach basic values. Families can also implement basic nightly rituals like sharing cooking duties, setting the dinner table and washing dishes. After dinner, bedtime is often the best time to observe rituals. A nightly tuck-in or story is a tradition that's easy to keep and encourages children go to bed and hopefully stay there for the night feeling safe, secure and loved.
Once these basic rituals are developed, you're ready to expand them into lasting family traditions. When developing traditions, families should look to the past to inform the future. Bring back old traditions by talking with family elders -- parents, grandparents and older aunts and uncles -- about the special things they did as children and young adults, then continue the ones that you like in your own family. Part of creating a family identity is acknowledging the individual identity of each member of the family.
Not all the old traditions you dig up will work for your family at present. Families should also create new traditions that will keep everyone interested and actively involved. One way to build tradition is to create special family behaviors; things that the family does only with each other. A unique holiday gift exchange, family birthday celebrations and milestone traditions a special dinner when a teenager gets his driver's license or an annual beach trip on the first day of summer, for example are common family behaviors.
Holidays also lend themselves to creating tradition. Annual religious observances are usually marked in special ways -- family Christmas tree shopping and decorating, Passover Seder dinners, Easter Egg hunts -- that celebrate both holiday and family. You don't need a special occasion to create a tradition, however. A family can develop unorthodox traditions based on its own quirks, such as annually living like a tourist in your hometown for a weekend.
Whatever the new tradition, it's important to make sure that all family members are involved in creating it. This is mainly to ensure the tradition is something everyone will enjoy celebrating, but also that it reflects the family's distinct character.
And the more enjoyment your family gets from it, the longer the tradition will last, possibly carrying over into future generations. Interviewing family members is a great way to pass along rituals and traditions from one generation to the next. The Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage publishes a guide that tells you how to get started.
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