Alanna Dailey - Celtic Traditions

Celtic Traditions: Choice
Growing up, I always thought that my family was fairly average. We celebrated holidays and birthdays just like any other family and relied on each other for support and advice. However, I as became older, I realized that we celebrated holidays that others did not; we celebrated the changing of seasons. It was not until about a year or so ago, when I had to write a family roots paper that I realized that this is what we were doing; I just thought they were extra family “get togethers” that everyone enjoys. In spring we have a picnic and Maypole; in the summer we have an epic water-gun battle; and in winter we have a “Christmas cookie baking day” (when I asked about fall, my grandfather told me that Americans celebrate Halloween, so we do not need to do so as a family). My family is Irish Celtic and therefore we celebrate the solstices and equinoxes. From the descriptions above, you can tell that our celebrations (aside from the Maypole and Halloween) are far from the traditional Celtic festivals. I believe each festivals was associated with a Celtic god or goddess and included bon fires, decorating your house with branches of a particular tree (spring), sleeping in the forest (spring), and pouring milk on the ground as a means of thanksgiving (summer) and I cannot remember other rituals.
I wish I could find a connection between my family traditions and the ancient festivals, but alas there is none; they are just activities we like to do as a family during the solstices and equinoxes. One possibility as to why there is such a huge difference between the two is Christianity. My family was/is mostly Roman Catholic and it is known that the Catholics shifted pagan beliefs to Christian beliefs and celebrations. Regardless, I think that it is neat that these celebrations stem from ancient traditions.