Fajitas and Margaritas for Thanksgiving

While I consider President Obama one of the most destructive Presidents in the history of our Republic, I have always appreciated his sense of humor. This year, his daughters had other plans for the traditional "pardoning of the turkeys" at the White House, but Mr. Obama got a laugh by telling the audience that, even after his final term is over, he plans to pardon turkeys every year, just for the fun of it.

My daughter couldn't make it home for Thanksgiving this year. In her text, she said the feast tradition in Houston, Texas, is "fajitas and margaritas". Sounds festive!

This got me wondering why we stick to traditions that may not make sense in the time and space we live in. My husband thinks fowl is foul, so I purchased a turkey leg for me and a small ham for him, but I fixed all the traditional side dishes and pies. Pies are my favorite tradition for any feast.

Christmas is just around the corner. I stopped "doing Christmas" in 2004 and have never regretted it, renouncing the traditions of the yuletide frenzy for the transcendent peace of Christ. See Christmas Challenge for the full story.

After Christmas comes Easter, with its own pagan traditions passed off as devotion. Does anyone actually believe that bunnies and eggs honor the death and resurrection of our Savior? Please.

What do we give up when we mindlessly observe traditions? We can pass on things like rules and laws and expectations that bind us and steal our freedom in Christ. The trappings of tradition may merely distract us from present opportunities. While we're still doing this year after year, we may be missing out on opportunities to enjoy or bestow even more meaningful blessings.

What do we surrender when we devote ourselves to tradition instead of being present in the moment?How does tradition betray our higher purposes?


From the Online Etymology Dictionary:

tradition (n.)

late 14 c., "statement, belief, or practice handed down from generation to generation," especially "belief or practice based on Mosaic law," from Old French tradicion "transmission, presentation, handing over (late 13c.) and directly from Latin traditionem (nominative traditio) "delivery, surrender, a handing down, a giving up," noun of action from past participle stem of tradere "deliver, hand over," from trans- "over" + dare "to give". The word is a doublet of treason. Meaning "a long-established custom" is from 1590s. The notion is of a customs, ways, beliefs, doctrines, etc. "handed down from one generation to the next.

For Thanksgiving 2017, I think I'll try fajitas and margaritas and see how it goes.