Christmas Tradition: Episode 1

    My mom is pretty much the best, most creative, most loving, most bond-encouraging mom ever. We have a lot of very unique traditions, and I didn't realize how fabulous it is to have traditions until I moved away to college and people I talked to thought that our traditions are over the top. So, since I mentioned one in my previous Post!, I will expand on that thought and share one of our traditions with you: The Bells

When I was about 8 or 9, my mom heard of another family that has this tradition and she wanted to recreate it with us. So she purchased 6 large hand bells. They look something like this:

For most of the month of December, they sit on the mantle piece and look pretty and festive until Christmas Eve when the tradition begins.

This is how the tradition is supposed to work: on Christmas Eve, we all go to bed with a bell. When you wake up in the morning, you are allowed to strike your bell one time. If anyone else is awake, they can ring back to you. If no one rings back, you have to go back to sleep. You can't sit there and ring and ring and ring until the whole neighborhood is ringing back. When you hear six more bells ringing back at you, then everyone is awake and we can get up and celebrate Christmas. 

This is how the tradition really works: one of us quietly tiptoes into every other room until all six of us kids are awake. Then you go back to your own room and ring the bell, and magically everyone else is already awake and ringing back to you! Awesome! We can all get up now! My parents pretend they can't hear anything until we all march into their bedroom with our cling clanging bells, and then they force us all back downstairs until the video camera is ready. While waiting for the camera, we try to convince Nate and Abby that it is more than okay to STOP. RINGING. NOW. Because let me tell ya, those bells are loud.

Now that I'm older, I have developed a huge love for the hymn I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day. Our churches don't really have bells, and so we don't normally get to hear the bells on Christmas Day. One line of that hymn has really burned in my heart this year after all the sorrow we've experienced in our country and in the world. It is: 

And in despair I bowed my head;

"There is no peace on earth," I said;

"For hate is strong,

And mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"

In absolute certainty, I reject that message. Yes, there is sorrow and pain and hurt in this life. There is also joy and peace and laughter and in my family, there are bells on Christmas Day. This year, those loud and lovely bells will mean something different to me:

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:

"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;

The Wrong shall fail,

The Right prevail,

With peace on earth, good-will to men."