The winter holidays are a special part of the year for so many families. It’s a time to gather together and enjoy the company of the people you love. Everyone celebrates in their own unique way, and many families even have traditions that they participate in every year.
We celebrate Christmas in my family, and we have a few traditions that have developed over the years. My family’s fairly religious, so we always go to a Christmas Eve church service the night before Christmas. We also eat a huge breakfast on Christmas morning.
Julia Thorne is a sophomore, and she celebrates Christmas in her household as well. On Christmas Eve, she gathers with her aunts, uncles, and cousins to spend time together for the holiday. “We would bake cookies and watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” she said.
Lauren Taylor, a junior, celebrates Hanukkah. “Every year around Hanukkah we decorate the house. My mom has a plethora of blue and silver tinsel that we use to cover the baluster and we put all of our hanukeahs out in the living room,” she said via text. “Usually we spend one night of the holiday with our grandma. We light the candles together and eat latkes and jelly donuts. When it comes to the presents, we leave them on the table in the living room and open one every night until they’re gone.”
Connor Matas, another sophomore, celebrates Christmas with the people he’s close to. He and his family attend a lot of parties and usually get together with friends. ”Sometimes we even travel to Miami to spend Christmas with my cousins and my dad,” he said.
Amelia Griffith celebrates Christmas with family and good food. “My family are spread out across the east coast, but we all travel to my grandmom’s house for Christmas. We’re big on classical decoration and food, so we always have mince meat tarts and a really nice beef roast for Christmas dinner. We’re Christian so on the night of Christmas Eve we usually go to a church for service and sing,” they said via text.
Liam Pagett also gets together with family for the holidays. “My family and I like to go and meet with our grandparents,” he said. He opens Christmas presents in two batches: one on Christmas with his immediate family, and another in the time he and his family visit their grandparents.
Food also plays a fun part in his family’s Christmas. “On Christmas morning, my dad wakes the family up to help make homemade buttermilk waffles,” he said.
While the holidays are exciting on their own, the time and traditions we share with the people we love make them all the more magical.
Hi! My name is Kayleigh and I am a staff writer for The Mycenaean. Two fun facts about me are that I want to be a bestselling author and frogs are my favorite animal!