The holiday season is in full force. From twinkling Christmas lights and seasonal eggnog to lighting candles on the menorah and counting down to the new year, everyone has their own way of celebrating the winter holidays.
A senior at Hastings High, Jaiden Kully, celebrates both Christmas and Hanukkah with her family.
“My family celebrates Christmas on my mom’s side of the family, and we celebrate Hanukkah with my dad’s side,” Kully said.
On Kully’s mom’s side Christmas is very family-orientated.
“Our Christmas celebrations are pretty typical of other families. We usually have a big family brunch and then open presents while sitting around the tree and listening to the sounds of a fire,” Kully said.
The Hanukkah period lasts for eight days.
“We usually go to my grandparent’s house on the first day of Hanukkah. My grandma always makes a lot of food for us to eat, which is comparable to a Christmas meal,” Kully said.
One typical Hanukkah tradition is lighting the menorah.
“We only light one candle to represent the first day of the holiday, but then we light the remaining seven over the celebratory week. There are nine candles total, but only eight represent the eight days of Hanukkah. The ninth candle, called the Shamash, is used to light the rest of the candles,” Kully said.
Kully’s favorite winter tradition is traveling.
“Being able to celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah at different locations has resulted in a lot of fun holiday memories,” Kully said.
Junior Dylan Lemke has a favorite holiday tradition as well.
“One of my favorite Christmas traditions is when all of my dad’s side get together a weekend or two before Christmas to bake a ton of yummy treats,” Lemke said.
Lemke plans on welcoming the New Year with some of his friends.
“For this New Year’s, my plan is to get together with my closest friends and just relax and reflect on everything thing that has happened in that last year,” Lemke said.
Kaila Avent, a senior, although non-religious, still celebrates Christmas.
“We’ve always celebrated Christmas with my family, mostly because it’s a really festive, fun time of the year. My parents, although non-religious, didn’t want us to miss out on the holiday and always celebrated it with their families. As kids we got gifts from Santa and set out plates of cookies for him, too. I didn’t even know Christmas was a religious holiday until I started going to school and realized my friends went to church on Christmas,” Avent said.
Avent and her family have their own festive Christmas traditions.
“We put up decorations, lights, and decorate a tree. We bake cookies and play Christmas music, too. On Christmas morning we open presents and have stockings, and that evening my mom makes a turkey dinner,” said Avent.
It is easy to be caught up in all of the presents and festivities, but Avent’s family does not fail to make the holiday season one about giving.
“My parents taught us that Christmas was a season of giving, not receiving, and to be thankful. We always wrote thank you letters for all of our gifts after Christmas. Also, sometimes we’d fill up those shoe boxes with gifts that get mailed overseas to children in need,” Avent said.
Sophomore Tagg Pershing also has a unique approach to the holiday season.
“My family celebrates Christmas by going out of town on trips because my mom lost her mother earlier in her life and she wanted to have fun travel experiences with us, so instead of presents we go on trips,” Pershing said.
While the majority of students and their families are all about the holiday fun, some choose to not celebrate anything.
Jefferson Mai, a junior, and his family, do not celebrate Christmas or any other holiday around the wintertime. Instead, Mai enjoys a relaxing winter break.
“My favorite winter activity used to be going outside and making snowmen and snow caves when I was younger,” Mai said.
Growing up, Mai celebrated the Vietnamese New Year, which takes place in February.
No matter your religion, family, or race, anyone and everyone can find joy and bliss this holiday season. While some enjoy a laid-back break from school, others go all in with the decorations, food, and holiday cheer. From celebrating Hanukkah to the Vietnamese New Year, Happy Holidays to all.
