Essay #1 Rough Draft

Virtually every family has traditions. My family is no exception. I love traditions. I think they make any occasion more meaningful and memorable. Traditions give you something to look forward to at certain times of the year. They can build up an anticipation of an event to almost make it out to be more than what it really is. There are many different types of traditions, from large ones to small ones, but each tradition has its own special and meaningful significance. Every tradition varies it type but they all can bring about a common thing, happiness. The main tradition that my family has definitely is with food. Everyone in my extended family loves it, but who doesn’t.
The main cook in my family is definitely my mom. She cooks most of the time, but not all the time. When my mom isn't the one doing the cooking, my dad takes over. Whenever he has to cook, he will usually just prepare something simple and easy to make. He won't make the most extravagant thing, but it usually tastes OK. Although, sometimes I do get a little scared when I hear he is going to cook dinner. He's pretty good at making some grilled cheese, so if I smell that I know it's going to be alright. But anything else that isn’t simple to make, or that is off the beaten path, you might want to watch out for. My dad doesn't have any specialty dishes. He will usually just make some tacos or something simple like that. My mom however, has a few specialty dishes. She makes sausage and egg casserole, green bean casserole, enchiladas, and something she calls Hotsy Totsy. I like all of those dishes except for her green bean casserole. I have never really liked it, even though she makes it for almost every family get together. My favorite dish is definitely Hotsy Totsy, with enchiladas coming in a close second. I’m not sure of everything that is in the Hotsy Totsy that she makes but I know it is some kind of Italian dish that has meat and marinara sauce but also has layers of crumbled Doritos chips. It certainly is not the healthiest meal in the world, which is why we only have it once or twice a year. Anything else she makes it usually pretty good too.
There are certain dishes that are kind of a tradition for certain occasions. My mom always makes green bean casserole for almost every occasion. She loves it. Whether it's just a get together with friends or a family reunion, she always brings that dish. People would probably think that something was wrong if she showed up at our family reunion with her green bean casserole. It’s just one thing that everybody associates with her, but as long as it’s a good association, then she’s perfectly fine with it. On Christmas we always have sausage and egg casserole for breakfast that my mom prepares the night before. You can always start to smell it throughout the house on Christmas Eve when she is getting the dish prepared. After she prepares it, she puts it in the fridge so on Christmas morning all she has to do is put it in the oven and breakfast is served. Then for kind of a “lupper” kind of meal, a lunch and supper time mix, at around 3 or 4ish we have a big ham that my mom has cooking in the oven all day. Most of my family members that live in town come over to my house and we all have a good time.
Every Thanksgiving my family and other relatives go down to my grandparent’s house. It's about a 2 hour drive from my house and we usually arrive around 11 or 12. As soon as we open the door to go inside, you can smell everything that is cooking in the kitchen, and you know you're in the right place. My grandma always makes a delicious turkey while my other aunts help prepare mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, peas, green beans, yams, rolls, and all of the other foods people enjoy on Thanksgiving. Usually at family reunions everyone brings some kind of dish. My mom of course brings her green bean casserole, but the other dish that is a must have at family events is my aunt’s chip dip. Nobody knows what kind of dip it is or what is in it, but the one thing people do know, it that it is amazing. It's something I’ve never seen around at a store or anywhere else. I think it's just some random thing she has thrown together. However it's made though doesn't matter to me as long as it continues to be delicious. That’s one thing that makes family members want to arrive early, to ensure that they would get their turn at the famous chip dip.
Having the traditional foods at get-togethers and holidays is important because if my mom didn't make her usual sausage and egg casserole for breakfast on Christmas morning, then the day just wouldn't seem to have started right. As well as having ham for dinner, the whole Christmas experience just wouldn't feel the same. I think having the same dishes gives you something special to look forward to on every occasion, and makes those occasions seem that much more special when you get to eat the dishes that you have been craving for since last thanksgiving ended. The special dishes signifies the importance and the happiness that comes with getting people get together and just having a good time while enjoying each other’s company. If every holiday is just people bringing different foods all of which are just OK, then the whole experience can become kind of bland and boring. When you get that one dish that everybody loves and someone brings it every time, you know you are going to have something to look forwards too other than just seeing all of your relatives that you have seen in a while. Tradition can carry on family bonding and happiness for years, and hopefully generations.