Yep, I'm a Renaissance Festival Geek!!

Every April in North Texas brings a new run of what's known as Scarborough Faire...a renaissance festival complete with jousting, highland games, wenches, and men in skirts!! It's an honored tradition in my home...we usually go a couple of times a season, and we "dress up" at least once. That means "costumes"...kilts, swords, custom-fit leather boots, etc. I'll post a picture one of these days! We do our best to use the lingo -- "Thank thee" instead of thank you, "Huzzah" instead of WOOHOO!! It's really a wonderful time -- something special for my family.

We finally made it this year, although only once, and we skipped the costumes (which was a good thing, as the heat index for the day was somewhere near 100-degrees!). We listened to our favorite bagpipe band (bought their latest CD!), chowed down on arguably the BEST turkey legs EVER, and watched the father-son knife throwing duo, throwing knives at each other using the same jokes they tell year after year! Despite our daughters' incessant chants of "can we ride a ride?", we did manage to see a few of the shops, and even bought some of our favorite bath salts.

Nothing much changes from year to year at Scarborough Faire. The King and Queen appear to be timeless and ageless. The Maypole always gets tangled. The parade always ends with this crazy guy named Miguel who walks along saying "This is the end of the parade!" And yet, year after year, we visit, we listen, we laugh, we shop, we eat, we sweat (it's HOT!), and we look forward to the next April, when the village will re-open for yet another year of predictable merriment!

It's tradition. And in my opinion, traditions were made to be honored, no matter how many things DON'T change! We'll go back next year, and the next and the next, and there will be comfort in finding things exactly as we left them the year before. I'm sure eventually some things will change, and though I'm sure we'll all adapt, we'll also be a little sad at yet one more thing changing in our routine, stepping inches closer to slipping away.

I like traditions. Especially ones where men wear skirts!