The older I have gotten, the more I have learned to cope with - even appreciate - the various seasons of my life. Seasons are such an important part of human life that an entire chapter of the Bible is devoted to them!

This past weekend, my husband and I experienced a new chapter. For the first time in 45 years, I did not fill Easter eggs with candy or dye hard-boiled eggs. There were no baskets, no hunts. For more than 30 years, we “adults” have been hiding chocolate bunnies for the kids and grandkids - and it wasn’t unusual for someone to require the use of a shovel to retrieve their bunny! This year, there were no chocolate bunnies.

With two seniors in the family preparing for graduation, and all of the other busyness that life throws at young families, it just didn’t work with everyone’s schedules to have a family gathering.

With each passing year, the idea of handing down our family traditions to the next generation becomes a little more important. I have fond memories of my own childhood Easter hunts, in particular the year that my grandma found a basket with her name on it tucked into the branches of an apple tree in our back yard. She giggled like a child when she discovered her hidden treasure, and just recalling that memory makes me smile.

When I was raising my own children, I brought a lot of my own childhood traditions with me. But I also learned to appreciate the value in new ones, our own.

And as my children have become parents, I see them doing the same thing.

Being the parent of adult children is a unique experience. Holidays often become a juggling game of his parents, her parents, grandparents, step-parents. And sometimes, traditions change.

We were still able to spend part of the day with our daughter and her family, who live nearby, and enjoy the traditional Easter ham dinner. But it was different. You see, I’ve learned that life isn’t always predictable. Things don’t stay the same. Kids grow up. People move away. And traditions change. But that’s ok.

Every day is a new opportunity for new memories and new traditions.

Contact Ellen at: ellen@syndicatepub.com