OK, now this may seem like a weird title. I know. But it probably doesn’t mean what you think it does.
“Hide the Pickle” is actually a Christmas tradition in my family. It involves taking a pickle-shaped Christmas ornament and hiding it somewhere on the Christmas tree. My family has done it for years, and honestly, Christmas Eve wouldn’t feel the same without it.
Ever since I can remember, on Christmas Eve, after my family, cousins, and grandparents have all opened our gifts, my uncle tells us to go sit in my older cousin’s room and wait until he finishes hiding the ornament somewhere within the tree. My brother, my older cousin, my little cousin, and I all pace impatiently around her room, asking every ten seconds, “Can we come out yet?”
When my uncle finally lets us come out, we have to line up in age order (very professional, I know) and WALK down the hallway to the tree in the living room before we can start shoving each other out of the way to find that stupid pickle.
Now, it is very important to note that, for whatever reason, I think I have only found that pickle ornament maybe twice in my entire life. I can’t honestly remember if my brother has ever found it, but I sincerely doubt it.
However, I do know for a fact that my older cousin somehow has the precision of a sniper when it comes to finding that thing. There have been years when I didn’t even get to scan the full tree before she was plucking it out, yelling, “I FOUND IT!”
That pickle might as well be my Everest.
You may be wondering what is so special about finding this weird pickle ornament, and honestly, the prize changes from year to year. The lucky winner gets an extra present that night. Some years it’s money, maybe five or ten bucks, and other years it’s candy. One year when I won, I got a bag of Lindor chocolates, arguably one of the best prizes.
But no matter what the prize is, we always end up arguing over it, and usually someone ends up crying (cough, cough, my little cousin).
As ridiculous as this tradition sounds, it has become one of my favorite parts of Christmas. Even though we’re all getting older, we still take finding that tiny ornament way too seriously.
At this point, it’s not even about the prize anymore. It’s about the competition, the chaos, and the memories we make every Christmas Eve.
And who knows? Maybe this year I’ll finally find that stupid pickle before my cousin does.