Tradition and Culture

 As I was growing up, Christmas was always my favorite Holiday. I still remember all of the different customs that we would do. On Christmas Eve, we would read in Luke chapter 2. My parents would then give us each a pair of pajamas, and then send us to the basement, where my siblings and I would watch classic Christmas movies, such as A Christmas Story, The Santa Clause, or The Grinch who Stole Christmas. Then we would all restlessly try to sleep, until around 6:00, where would then play video games, until 8:00, where we were finally allowed to go upstairs, and see all of the gifts. 

Growing up, I know many people who had many different traditions, whether it was going skiing on Spring Break, eating turkey for Thanksgiving, or just deciding to eat dinner as a family every night. All of these different traditions are important to families. Traditions can give people a sense of structure, and allow a culture to be instilled on the family. There are many different things that lead to culture creation, but regardless of whether you are mindful of it or night, a culture will be instilled, so it is important to be mindful of the culture you make. 

Traditions can range from a large variety of areas. They can be small things that you do everyday, or big things that happen occasionally. It is important to instill a sense of tradition. There are important aspects of instituting tradition. Traditions are constantly passed down from generation to generation. They can be absorbed from what other people are doing, or can be created by the family. As we create and perpetuate traditions, we are trying to create something that will outlast us.

Culture is an ideology of the family. Culture is created through careful implementation of traditions and rules. An example of a culture creation, is from when I was a kid. Every Sunday my family would go to Church, and we were constantly taught to keep Sunday holy. They made it clear from when we were kids we didn't go shopping or go to friends on Sunday. As a result, now that I'm 19 years old in college, I still never go shopping on Sunday, and I never go to just hang out with friends. Many times culture can come from within a family, or within an area, or different groups of people. A football team may instill a culture of work ethic, while a university may instill a culture of study. Cultures are there to help us to promote growth. When people join a competitive team, they may already be good, but as they realize the culture, putting in the extra effort along with others will allow them to improve much faster, then them doing it on their own. As a family, creating a culture creates a place for us all to grow, in which we do not have to do it alone, rather we have the help of many others.

It is very important to select a culture that will allow for the most amount of growth possible. There can be culture of loyalty created, but at the same time, a culture of deception can created if you are not careful. The biggest thing that you can do to instill a culture, is to lead it. When you show others an example, it is easier for other people to see what they should do, and follow it. As a culture becomes more defined, it easier for others to follow the culture more closely. The more often that you can consistently demonstrate the culture, the more emphasis there will be to keep it.