Traditions

Independence Day: Charlie's first holiday. (Major holiday, anyway. The calendar page on his birthday mentioned it being a Quebecois holiday for some saint. I need to check that out.) I'm more conscious than ever of traditions. I come from a home without many--that's not a bad thing necessarily, but it's not typical. Growing up this way also makes me aware that traditions don't just happen--they are something to be created and nurtured.

Lisa, on the other hand, brings to our equation many Trinidadian traditions. Charlie had his first bath yesterday, nine days after his birth. Then again, Lisa is far from a typical Trini (not there really is a typical one, just like there's not a typical American, just a stereotypical), so her traditions and beliefs are as unique as mine, not based as much on ancestry or belief as independent choice.

Where Charlie will fall in all this will be a wonder to watch. We want him to choose his way in life, and again, that is as much a tradition as going to the Esplanade on July 4 to see the show and hear the Boston Pops. It's this, more than changing diapers and midnight feeds, that constitutes parenting.