Very busy today with traditions and rituals
Today I am engaging in some traditions and rituals.
I have been a big defender of traditions for a long time... I think that it's actually very good to be part of a community with traditions and rituals. You may not like the ones you were raised with, so if you find yourself in that position, you should do your best to come up with new ones that you do like.
I do not like solemn rituals or traditions. I like feeling that I know a funny secret, or that I am sharing a silly joke. I cannot do solemn shit ever, for any reason. I find even the solemn rituals of weddings a little freaky (though I am glad I have been to a few very nice ones). To me, the supreme tradition/ritual is a sort of elaborate joke.
So long as it doesn't connect you to ideologies you hate, it can be very affirming to just embrace some repeated symbolic action that stretches back across generations (either of generational age, or the micro-generations that are all still alive sharing their responsibilities in the world today) and cling to that as some proof that you have a community. It feels very, very good to share a symbolic action with other people. It feels very good to share, and it feels great to teach people to participate.
There is really nothing better than being in a place where everyone will roll up and be on the same page emotionally about an important, exciting event. You don't need a secret handshake or anything to get everyone there, but I think it helps to have something. The best rituals I ever participated in were the rituals associated with being in marching bands in high school and college. Band kids are utterly unmatched when it comes to ritual development... the music itself is a kind of ritual. The best marching band I was ever in sometimes just felt like we were performing a long incantation. We had a special route we would march across town, and special places we would perform specific songs. It was incredible to be part of that.
I think people in my generation are a little too frightened of tradition in the form of ritual. You really can make up your own. I recommend trying.