Christmas Traditions are important in our family. We have passed down behaviors with special significance for as long as I can remember. It only takes one family member with passion to keep past traditions from becoming extinct. That person was my mother...and her mother before.
We love snow. And we get a little childlike when we see the first snowfall of the season. A seemingly silly tradition, but daughter calls mother to share the joy of witnessing the first snowflakes. I'm not certain how many generations this has been a Christmas tradition, but I'm guessing more than a few.
The winter of 2010 found me anxiously awaiting the first snowfall; when the flakes started falling I called mom and we celebrated this simple miracle we loved. That was the last time I made that call. On Christmas Eve my mother, who noticed the simple things, went home to Heaven. And what a Christmas surprise...it started snowing!
You know where this is going! The next winter, first snowfall, the phone started ringing and my daughter and I celebrated our tradition with tears and joy all mixed up together.
This year after the first snowflakes fell, my two year old granddaughter looked out the window and said, "Thank you mommy!" She believed the snow was a gift just for her.
And it was. The small, simple beauty of a snowflake continues to keep joy and Christmas memories alive in this family steeped with tradition.