Traditions are Forever

Birthdays are a very common thing to celebrate with your family. Well every year on December 18th of every year we celebrate my fathers birthday just like any other family. This is a tradition that I would like to keep going throughout my life as it means a lot to both me and my family. Although we celebrate his life on his birthday each year there are so many other traditions that we had when he was alive that we can no longer continue.

When I was younger my father was diagnosed with lung cancer. This was a devastating time for everyone in my family. I was very young and so I did not realize what was going on. Although I was very young at the time and I do not remember much about what my father was like, I do remember that we had a lot of fun together and everyone loved him. Another thing I remember about my father was that he loved food, especially spicy food, and one of his favorite restaurants was South Of The Border. This is something I remember very vividly because anytime that we went out to eat we would end up at South Of The Border. At the end of every meal we would get an Andes mint chocolate candy and I would try and steal my dads before he noticed. When my dad passed away in October of 2006 the memorable trips to this restaurant where my dad would push himself to eat the spiciest foods and I would laugh as I would sit back and watch him freak out and sweat due to the crazy spice, suddenly stopped. Now every time I eat an Andes Mint I have very vivid and fun memories of spending these meals with my father. This restaurant may not look like much to anyone else but when I look at this restaurant I see memories of my father.

When I was younger this realization that I would never have another one of those moments was one of the hardest things I have ever had to accept. My entire family was different after he had passed. His passing left a lot of people in my family empty. This led to the realization that we needed to find a way to celebrate his life each year. We figured that since he loved food and music we would get together each year on his birthday and get some of his favorite foods and listen to his favorite music. Last year we got together with our whole family, listened to his favorite band, The Grateful Dead, got food at his favorite restaurant, South Of The Border, and ate his favorite dessert, eclairs. The tradition has lasted since his passing and we will continue the tradition through the future.

While this is a tradition that I am glad that I can continue throughout my lifetime, there are other traditions that we had that I wish I could continue with my father. One of these traditions was climbing up Mt. David and watching the fireworks on the Fourth of July. My dad would give me piggyback rides up to the very top of the mountain while I used the video camera and recorded the fireworks while annoying him with millions of questions like, “Where do they shoot the fireworks?” and “How many fireworks can they shoot at once?” and of course the  “BOOM!” everytime a firework went off in the air. Although I can no longer continue this tradition with my father, I plan on taking this to my future so that way I can continue this with my children.

These are the traditions that I would like to keep alive throughout my lifetime as they are a celebration of my fathers short life and a great way to remember him. Although these are not the most unique traditions, they are still very important to me and my family. These traditions helps us remember the good memories that we all had with him.

Photo on Foter.com