I’m from Canada, where Christmas is a big deal. The minute Halloween is finished, the Santa decorations go up in stores, Christmas songs start playing on the radio, and the fuss of holiday shopping starts in earnest. For me, one of the most nostalgic parts of Christmas is the food. I love a plate of roast turkey, stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce with some pumpkin pie, all with a frosty glass of eggnog to drink.
But when I first moved to Japan, I was at a loss. Those foods are nearly impossible to find. And, even if I did find a turkey, I didn’t have an oven that would fit the bird! So, I asked my partner what we should do. On one hand, we could try to keep the old traditions alive. We could somehow procure roast turkey and try to find the ingredients for pumpkin pie. On the other hand, we could adapt. So my partner asked me a simple question, “What’s your favourite food?” The answer is simple: tacos. So, on December 25th, we had tacos. They were fantastic. The next year, again, we had tacos.
Fast-forward 8 years, we’ve had tacos on Christmas every year. It turns out, that’s how traditions are formed. Personally, I don’t think traditions have to be traditional. For me, they just have to be suitable to the place and people.
