Anyone who watches hockey will know that Leafs fans are as loyal as they come. Growing up as the daughter of a “sports-addict”, I remember crossing off the days before hockey season once again burst onto the television screen from a long summer slumber.
When I was young, it was a tradition at my house to watch Hockey Night in Canada every weekend, something we still do to this day.
Reflecting on this family tradition after visiting home for Thanksgiving weekend, I realized that people of my generation lack a sense of community and tradition.
It was never boring, being raised in a family where you knew what to expect when you woke up on the morning of your birthday. These were things that you knew were going to happen, yet you still looked forward to them.
Now I know it may seem that as Queen’s students we are more likely to follow traditions, but outside these tricolour walls we all seem to leave behind our passion for tradition and join the masses.
Take the “Oil Thigh” for example. You can often find your average Queen’s student at various sporting events chanting and singing the words to the beloved school song. The students who participate in these school events tend to lose this unifying bond when they graduate and move on to their professional lives.
Some alumni maintain strong ties with the University after graduation, but most people fall short in keeping these bonds once they leave campus.
When I say ‘traditions,’ I don’t necessarily mean long-standing family rituals. By traditions, I’m referring to any group activity that you enjoy.
I think that people fail to recognize that traditions give people the opportunity to participate in something that once meant a great deal to our predecessors. By following traditions, you’re not only respecting those who came before you, you’re also participating in an act that connects you to the past.
Just the other day, I had a conversation with a friend in which he told me that his family no longer celebrates Thanksgiving. This friend told me that they stopped not because they don’t want to, but rather because it’s something they don’t feel the need to do.
Are we, as a society, morphing more into individualists as opposed to members of a community?
When did we start to lose the values we were brought up on? Have we lost our need for community relations? Without this sense of interdependence and continuity, individuals are no longer communicating with others the way they were once able to.
As technology takes precedence, people are seemingly forgetting the importance of family and the importance of close-knit groups. Have we forgotten the importance of physical human emotions?
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