family roots.

My family has many traditions at Christmas time and I always look forward to each and every one of them. As important as they are, sometimes it is refreshing to stray from traditions in order to make room for spontaneity.

On Christmas Eve, after missing three different church services (oops, we did finally make it to one), our family found ourselves driving through memory lane. We drove up and down the hills of Cincinnati in order to drive by all of the former homes of my loving grandparents.

Through the years, we have heard one particular story that always gives everyone a laugh.

Ginny, my grandmother, was on a date in high school when my grandpa hid behind a bush to spy on her. He had a crush on her at the time and was jealous she was on a date with someone other than HIM!

I always had a certain image in my mind of how that story played out. On Christmas Eve Day, we drove past the houses that my grandparents grew up in, just 4 doors apart, and saw the bush that my grandpa hid behind.  It was cool to finally put a picture behind that story.  As we continued driving, my grandpa pointed out the cemetery where my great grandparents are buried. My cousin and I never saw this before and requested if we could go see the grave of our great-grandparents. Maybe this is kind of a morbid thing to do as a family on Christmas Eve Day but a powerful one at the least.

You could tell that it was difficult for my grandpa but important for all of us to experience together.

photos compliments of Tessa Joy

           

We had a very Merry Christmas filled with sentiment, laughter, and of course remembrance of the true reason for the season. Hope you did as well J.