Food is a necessity of life. Tradition is also.
This column brings forward Inspiring History and does so through Portraits of Character, which show how we can improve the human condition. This week we look at tradition.
Tradition consists of practices, beliefs, and rituals passed down through generations within a particular community or a segment of society. Examples of tradition include holiday celebrations, festivals, and family customs. This is for cultural tradition.
There are other forms of tradition. For example, historical tradition includes stories, legends, and customs that are part of a group's historical heritage. These traditions often shape a community's identity and values.
Traditions are very closely aligned with Portraits of Character. We have looked at exemplary people who one might follow to do good deeds for humankind. The idea of traditions allows the examples to be multiplied and to be combined, and to become something that can be carried over generations and centuries.
Many of my ancestors came from Cornwall on the southwestern corner of the British Isles. They came as zinc and iron miners and came from several millennia of tin miners and stone carvers. Their occupations were grueling and took part in a dark and cold underground hard rock mining. Their food helped nourish and unify.
A staple for holidays was saffron buns. Cornish saffron buns are yeast-leavened sweet buns that are infused with saffron. This gives them a distinctive golden color and unique flavor and smell. These buns often contain dried fruits like currants or raisins
The making of saffron buns is a strong Cornish tradition. My mother learned it from her father, my father ate them at his own holiday table because of his father. Other relatives nearby made their own as a common enjoyment for the seasons held dear. I carry on the tradition because I want to keep good things going, and I like to eat them on holidays like Christmas. They remind me of the good things in life and, like traditions, it helps to keep us moving toward improving our human condition; like a good Portrait in Character.
The rocks and castle atop Carn Brea in Redruth, Cornwall. My extended family, on both sides came from within a few miles of here. This was an ancient fort. Many tin mines have been in the area for millennia.
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Inspiring History is a compendium of people we could recognize for their good traits: knowledge, skills, abilities, and intentions that amount to qualities that have made our world a better place. These Portraits in Character offer us examples that we could emulate ourselves for us to also improve the human condition and the world around us.
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Images courtesy Bill Truran or from public domain.
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Episode 58 2/8/2025
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