What will be Karov’s traditions?

This holiday season, my children rediscovered “Olaf’s Holiday Adventure.” In this animation Anna and Elsa realize that after living apart for many years, they don’t have any family traditions. Olaf sets off to find the best winter holiday traditions and bring them back to Anna and Elsa. He goes house to house singing:

“Happy, merry, holly, jolly season's greetings here

I'm wondering what your family does at that time of year

Love and joy and peace on Earth and tidings of good cheer

Do you have tradition things for that time of year?”

This song got me thinking about how we incorporate traditions into our lives. Sometimes, we inherit traditions from our ancestors. Or, we may decide to adopt traditions. And, occasionally, we create our own. 

Recently the Rossol Stein family came to our home for Shabbat and shared their tradition of putting the cup of wine over their heads when reciting Kiddush. At first they could not remember how this tradition started but then they recalled that it came about during the Pandemic. Their family members were gathered on Zoom for Shabbat blessings and one person lifted his Kiddush cup onto his head, where everyone could see it. 

Karov is in a very special stage, where we are exploring what this community and what our rituals will look like. I feel a bit like Olaf joyfully gathering up winter traditions. I’m so excited to see in the coming year(s), what sticks and what we try and then bid adieu. Will it become Karov tradition to have a band and dance the hora on Chanukah? Will we always offer thematic, group aliyot when the Torah is read? Will we all put kiddush cups over our head as we bless the fruit of the vine? 

If you have ideas for traditions that we should try out, please let me know. And, if we try things out that really don’t work for you, I would love to know that too! 

Wishing you a very Happy New Year.