Traditions are what keep families united and connected throughout the generations. Beloved traditions are vital to maintaining a strong, happy family by keeping the memories of those no longer with us alive and celebrating the new ones who join the family.
Special memories are treasured keepsakes of the heart as families continue to cherish past traditions and change or add new ones as families grow and change. Thanksgiving is a memorable holiday to carry on the legacy of family traditions while incorporating other traditions into the memory books of our minds as new generations bring fresh ideas that they would like to be carried on for years to come.
There’s no right or wrong way to define and continue your family traditions. Each family has traditions that mean the world to them, no matter how simple or grand they seem. The best traditions are built on being together and making memories, and Thanksgiving is the perfect occasion to create some cherished times.
While covering sports for the Student Printz at Southern Miss, I got to meet and learn a lot about sports and traditions. I learned about a favorite Thanksgiving tradition from former Sports Information Director Regiel Napier. He knew that I was from Laurel, and he had grown up in Hattiesburg. And everyone knows that there is always a rivalry over the Little Brown Jug. The game was an even more enormous event in the earlier years of the Battle for the Jug. It was held on Thanksgiving and dictated how the day would be planned because only some people missed this rivalry. Napier said if the game was in Hattiesburg, he and his family could have an afternoon dinner and head out to Tiger Stadium. But if the game was in Laurel, they would have to have an early turkey feast so they could make it to the game in time. Also, to ensure they looked their best, he said it was as much a day of high fashion as football. The men would dress in their best suits, and the ladies would break out their best dresses, finest hats, and luxurious furs. That tradition of having the game on Thanksgiving has been changed for a while, but it always had a mystical vibe and a memory that has stayed with me.
The lasting memories of unique traditions of years gone by will always bring a smile, maybe a wistful look in the eye, and perhaps even a laugh or two. Those are the natural treasures of traditions.
“Thanksgiving is one of my top favorite holidays because it’s about being together and enjoying your time together. My favorite traditions are cooking together as a family as we always watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade,” Donna Smith, Laurel High School teacher, said. “Those are some of my favorite memories of cooking alongside my mom and sister and always taste-testing everything. It has always been a special time because we’re not rushed but just enjoying each other’s company. Those will always be special memories of cooking with my mom and Mammaw.”
The Smith family would eat their delicious traditional breakfast casserole of eggs, green onions, black olives, cornbread, and other unique ingredients. At the same time, they gathered together to wave to Santa Claus on the television as he entered Macy Square, and everyone would yell out what they wanted for Christmas. That was a tradition that still is not missed today.
When the serious cooking started, mom would send dad and her grandson, and usually, me too, so that we were not underfoot when the cooking went into high gear. That allowed my dad, Howard Smith, his grandson, Josh Seabrook, and me to start our traditions. We always went on our traditional Thanksgiving Day walk around the neighborhood, picking up pretty leaves for decorations and sticks for our traditional Turkey Day bonfire. Our yard has an ancient chimney-style fireplace (like an older version of the newer fire pits) that still stands today. An iron pole is sticking out over where the fire is built, presumably to hold the cast-iron pots used to cook in like the ones you always see in old-time Western movies. It’s a pretty cool structure, and it became the centerpiece of one of our favorite traditions.
My dad would show us how to properly set up the wood and where to put the kindling for the perfect fire, showing us how to leave places to breathe and get the fire started correctly.
“Those are some of my best memories with my Pappaw,” Seabrook said. “We’d sit outside all day, go for walks, sit around the fire, and talk. It was so much fun. I miss those times with him, but he did teach me how to start a good fire, and we had a lot of great talks sitting out there. We’d have a Coke and snack and talk all day.”
While in the first grade, Seabrook was learning about the first Thanksgiving and the traditions of the Pilgrims and the American Indians. They made their own Indian-style drum using an old metal coffee can for the class. Holes were drilled in the side where a piece of string would be strung through and knotted to make a strap for them to hold their drums. The kids painted the cans and put feathers or other paper designs to look like an old American Indian drum. They put the plastic lid on and could beat on it and could beat it like a real drum.
Seabrook brought his home and wanted to add his creation to the decorations, but the simple craft became a significant tradition for the family. “We called it our Thankfulness box,” Seabrook said. “We’d get little slips of paper to write on there what we were thankful for that year, and then someone would read them after everyone was finished. We always left them in there, and it was fun to read the letters of thanks from years before, especially after my Mammaw had beaten her first round of colon cancer. There were lots of notes of thanks for that. That was a special tradition that we always looked forward to.”
Our crew has grown up a bit since then, but we revived the tradition last year. There wasn’t a little one in sight, but my sister–the teacher–passed out construction paper to everyone in the family. “They kind of looked at me crazy, but I told them we were making the hand-print turkeys like we did in school,” Smith said. “And it was truly a success. We had so much fun designing our turkeys, laughing, and having fun.”
Our traditions may seem a little offbeat or different from others, but that was the personality of my family and things that we enjoyed and looked forward to every year. It didn’t seem like Thanksgiving if some of those traditions were overlooked. They may have been simple traditions, but they had and still have a special place in all our hearts.
“Our tradition has always been family for every holiday,” Snooky Nicholson said. “As long as the family is together, everything is fabulous.”
Other traditions that you might want to try out one year may only sometimes be successful, such as a turkey trot race on one foot, but there are indeed traditions that your family will find to add to their unique collections. A remembrance table or candle for those family members who may be gone from our sight but will forever remain in our hearts is always a sweet tradition to add or continue. One tradition is the highly sought-after wishbone. Sometimes, it can be a fight to get the chance to hold the end of each bone, close your eyes, make that special, and pull to see whose wish is sure to come true.
Whatever your traditions are, always have fun and ensure laughs and stories are handed down for generations.
Traditions are genuinely what keep a family together. Those special memories will last a lifetime and will carry on the love and legacy of the family forever. So this Thanksgiving, carry on with your traditional activities, bring back some that may have been overlooked in years past, and breathe new life into family traditions by letting everyone get a chance to come together this time of year. That’s the best way to keep a strong family built on unity, tradition, and love. During the holiday season, everyone is young at heart and should enjoy this time with family and friends to the fullest.
Have a happy, safe, and blessed Thanksgiving, y’all!
