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Traditions are slipping downhill
(by Barbara Christian - November 11, 2010)
WINDOW ON MAIN STREET, BY BARBARA CHRISTIAN
Traditions are slipping downhill
We here in the Chagrin Valley are all about tradition. So let's discuss two that could disappear altogether if we don't keep an eye on them.
Tradition 1 -- The pumpkin roll is a dearly held tradition in our town, hearkening back to the 1960s, when a few boys from the senior class swiped pumpkins, hurled them down Grove Hill and ran like hell.
We have defended the pumpkin roll in this space for years, even as it evolved into something much bigger and badder. We defended it against well-meaning village officials who tried to end it, tame it, criminalize it, organize it and legitimize it.
In the cold, hard light of 2010, and our inner fuddy-duddy aside, we wonder if it's time our kids do a better job of policing this tradition.
And so, dear members of next year's Chagrin Falls High School junior and senior classes, would you, could you take the roll down a notch? If so, please consider the following five-part challenge:
-- No alcohol or drugs. In fact, take it upon yourselves to oust the kids who have been indulging in either or both. Better yet, drive them home.
-- Try "borrowing" the pumpkins from homes in the Chagrin Falls School District. Folks out in Kenston, West G and Solon country don't get why their pumpkins must be stolen to satisfy a Chagrin Falls tradition.
-- Keep the roll as it was before it turned into a media event. And that means Chagrin Falls juniors and seniors only. Police said kids as young as middle-school age show up now.
-- No inviting parents with their cameras. It's supposed to be a secret, remember? In fact, all adults should be banned, including alumni.
-- And no alerting the media. It's tough to hide your light under a barrel, but, remember, we are going for a return to the good old days here.
Last week, a Chagrin Falls police officer admitted to me he loves traditions like the pumpkin roll. He even called it "a rite of passage." But he adds the drunkenness, presence of parents, young kids, outsiders and TV cameras isn't anywhere near to how the pumpkin roll tradition began.
He wishes the roll would devolve back about 30 years, because it has become dangerous, and the behavior is appalling. He said he hopes kids will start to use common sense. If they don't, he said, "These kids will run themselves right out of their tradition."
Tradition 2 -- Also on our mind is Election Day and voting, an all-American tradition we citizens share or should. Is there a prouder moment than walking into your polling place and casting your ballot in front of everyone?
But these days, in the interest of getting the vote out, political strategists want us to vote early at home then drop our ballots in the mail. The only voters who should be doing that are those who can't make it to the polls on Election Day. Everyone else should honor the tradition of showing up at their neighborhood polling place.
Where's the pride when you cast your vote into a mailbox? Where is that feeling of patriotism? Where's the fun of not being able to meet your politically opposite neighbor with the cheery greeting of, "Hey, there, I just canceled your vote."
Joking aside, voting is something we should be proud of, and it's one of the few political exercises we should do in public where everyone can see.
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