After the December month, which is a month full of traditions for many of us, we contemplate on how far we should indulge in those traditions for the future. January has mostly been a month of recovering from the huge amounts of food and drinks we have taken in while entertaining family and guests. But we must remember that although we are blessed to have such riches, it's not like that for everyone. As we celebrate togetherness and closeness, this is not a given for everyone. Many people celebrate traditions in loneliness or chosen aloneness. A growing group is growing wary of traditions and begin to question if the traditions are there for us or if we are there for the traditions. I am blessed to live in a country where traditions are to be celebrated as we wish for the most part, but even if i tried to escape the cultural habits, it's impossible to escape the media interest and pressure to celebrate them together.
The common assumption that we all have family and therefore a clan to celebrate with is something that has always bothered me, and as a Jedi, one of the few here in the Netherlands I realize more and more, how lonely one can get if one is expected to be as excited over all the traditions as everyone else. For example, We wish each other a New Year at the 1st of January. This is because according to our calendar, our new year starts, but for many people the new year starts in Spring. Many cultures have decided for us when our new year starts. I am not fighting them, just contemplating and maybe even overthinking. What does the new year mean to you? Ask yourself, what did i achieve in January that i could not have started in October?
Another thing to think about is , where do your traditions come from? My father for example did not have a Polish thread in his body , but since my mother left when i was 11 he adopted the Polish way of celebrating the holidays , with food and all. When i asked him about it , he just stated ; “I love the way they celebrate their family traditions and the way they make a home” So the Christmases became more about family and food and a nice tree. Things that my calvinistic/jewish mother never celebrated in that way. Until then , religion was most important and to many it still is , either are valid in my opinion.
As Jedi , in a religion that is only just evolving and growing , we try to find our way in making our own traditions. Celebrating as a Global family and realising how fortunate we are to have each other. What we can learn from each other's traditions and way of life is that we are all in this together , whether we agree with traditions or not. Every way of life has its traditions and as Jedi we know that we are all connected in an invisible web of togetherness. So we connect , we don't exclude , we share our knowledge and don't grow inside knowledge for the few. We don't make separate clans and shut people out when they don't adapt soon enough. As a Jedi Minister i tell you , you are enough.
May the year bring you many blessings and it's never too late to start over , even in october. May the Force be with you !
