Giving Traditions

I love traditions, especially this time of the year.  I come from a very large extended family and we were always big on family traditions every year.  I have the fondest memories of being a child and going to my grandparents on Christmas Eve after church in rural Nova Scotia.  Their kitchen would be full of people with instruments and food.  My grandfather would always make rabbit pie and pass the Captain Morgan around the room.  I remember the lead up to Christmas Eve, walking in the woods and checking rabbit snares with him and the endless decorating and baking with my grandmother.  These were among the best Christmases I have ever known.  

My grandparents are not with us anymore and sadly those family traditions have stopped.  I use to feel sad about it but now I realize we have developed our own special traditions.  Among the many things that I do with my own children during this time of year, is to take all those beautiful food bags that all of our families at Maple Tree have generously decorated and filled to the Parker Street Food Bank.  Our family really looks forward to loading it all up and taking it to Parker Street every year.  It is a side of life I am grateful my children get to see and experience.  We are truly humbled by it every year.  

We choose the Parker Street Food Bank as our Giving Project each year because they rely on donations and do not receive food from Feed Nova Scotia.  I think what feed Nova Scotia does is great but there is good to do in our own back yard.  Every year when we go to Parker Street, it is empty.  Every year I wish we could do so much more.  This year was by far our biggest delivery ever!  We dropped off 50 bags in total!!  Thank You So Much for embracing this project.

I also, took the time to explain our project to them and that the food bags themselves were decorated by the children and to be gift bags for all the food going out.  All of the bags were so beautiful.  The children did such an amazing job!

I know this project makes a difference and leaves an impression because on my way out the door I bumped into a family that left the school last year and they were just arriving with bags of toys.  I cannot put into words how moved I was by that.

Anyway, all this to say, traditions do matter and children understand so much more than we give them credit for.  So, from my family both at Maple Tree and home we are all wishing you a Very Merry Christmas and Peace for the New Year!

~Michelle