Tradition

Yesterday, for the first time this year, we lit the fire in the fireplace. 

Time to dig out the plastic pumpkin pails, find the extra blankets, and stockpile a few extra cans of soup in the cupboard. It’s what cold weather folks do. It’s tradition.

I have long been leery of tradition, worried I would become trapped by the expectation to mimic whatever came before.

But as the heat wafted toward me from the fire’s flames, I felt only comfort. A sign, perhaps, of a change of heart. 

“Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire.” 
-Gustav Mahler