I'm not sure where I developed this deep sense of nostalgia, but for whatever reason, I'm really into personal traditions. Drinking a chai latte from Shades of Brown (one of my favorite coffee shops in Tulsa) on the first day of Fall is one of my most cherished personal traditions. I started it 3 years ago, because I was way too excited about the upcoming season and the weather changing. When you live in a place that gets as hot as Oklahoma does during the Summer you really start to enjoy the 3 weeks of fall before winter comes and throws ice on everything…or worse Summer comes back for a second run. Oklahoma weather is weird, but you get used to the constant weather changes. I don't really have a reason why I turned it into a tradition other than the fact that I love a good chai latte…and fall is pretty cool (no pun intended).

Granted I think tradition is a slightly over used word with odd connotations. Thank you, Fiddler on the Roof. It's not really the way I see it. I think tradition can be something beautiful so long as it stays somewhat flexible. The truth is life is very rarely going to turn out the same way from year to year. Life ebbs and flows just like the tide of the ocean. It's a little bit obnoxious how that works, I won't lie. Some years will be better than others. Some years will be fuller that others. The value of tradition is that from year to year you have something to look forward to, something to mark a place in your busy life.

Plus drinking a hot cup of chai latte and working on art is oh so good for the soul.