For some reason when I get around to untangling and hanging my lights it always seems to fall on a day that is bitterly cold and the weather outside is frightful.

Well, this year, I broke with that tradition and hung my lights on a balmy 40-degree day. It was wonderful. I didn’t even have to wear gloves, and my lights actually cooperated and came out of the tote with a minimum of fuss.

Don’t get me wrong, they were still a tangled, snarled mess, but it didn’t take long to sort them out. Maybe because my nose wasn’t frozen shut, my fingers weren’t numb, and I wasn’t in the preliminary stages of hypothermia.

Those conditions seem to adversely affect the entire process of hanging Christmas lights. Who knew?

Traditions are wonderful and never more so than at holiday times. However, I think it’s important that we don’t give a “Tradition” such power that it takes precedence over the true meaning of why we are celebrating in the first place.

For instance, we had a tradition of always celebrating Thanksgiving Day at home. This year, we were given the opportunity to spend it in Maryland. My folks asked if we would be available to drive them out east to visit my brother Corby and his family.

My husband and I discussed the plan and then chose to move our family Thanksgiving meal to the Sunday before Thanksgiving Day. With our family and friends seated around our table, I realized it is not the date that makes the day special, it is who you are sharing it with.

Coincidentally, my oldest brother Barry, and all his family were spending their holiday out west in Oregon. My remaining two brothers, Brent and Gene, and their families, remained in Iowa, but despite the geographical distance between us all, we were still connected by family ties of love.

Oh, and ties of obligation and annoyance and gratitude and all the other idiosyncrasies that make our family the wonderful family that it is.

With Christmastime comes many more traditions, some started when the children were babies. We always have stockings filled with little gifts and treats, and every year I purchase a new ornament for the kids with their names and the year written on them.

Every few years, I use a different theme to decorate the tree, and the keepsake ornaments are left packed away, but almost always, if I ask the kids what they want on the tree, they will reply, “All of our ornaments!”

This means the tree becomes a hodgepodge of styles and design, but it also makes it a one of a kind, unique and super special tree. As the kids hang ornaments, I love to listen to the stories shared as their ornaments invoke special memories of a certain Christmas or event.

Another tradition we honor, and one that we will never break, is the reading of Luke Chapter 2, the true Christmas story. My husband reads it aloud to all of us before we open gifts, as a reminder that the greatest gift we receive is the gift of Jesus. And that the greatest gift we can give is to share this knowledge with everyone.

Merry Christmas to all and a very blessed Happy New Year!