Ah, the “holidays,” the most magical time of the year. For most students, the “holidays” typically entail Christmas and New Years, and as it’s a more politically correct form of referring to this time of year, considering not all Americans celebrate Christmas. But what if you celebrate Christmas, New Years, and then some? “How can this be possible?” One might wonder. Well, it’s quite simple. My dad is Jewish (barely), my mom is Catholic (barely), and thus I, like many other religiously confused offspring, came to be. Therefore the saying “happy holidays” has a whole different meaning to me this time of year. Aside from New Year’s, which most Americans celebrate, I get to celebrate not one but TWO holidays that originated from multiple religions, both conveniently located this year at the same time.

For us half-Jewish half-Christian hybrids like myself, this time of year can be extremely overwhelming. One might think that I, like Hannah Montana, indeed get “the best of both worlds.” I mean I celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah (which technically, can be spelled a number of ways and this is just my favorite way of spelling it), the eight-night-long festival of lights. When the two holidays overlap, as they will this year on Dec. 24, they become the combined holiday of Chrismukkah, also celebrated also by Seth Cohen on "The OC." Hanukkah is technically not a very religious holiday; it’s more of a cultural tribute to the past. And although it is a very fun holiday, it’s not as big of a deal as many goys (non-Jewish folk) tend to think. No, I don’t get a present every night of Hanukkah, and no, I didn’t get a pair of really expensive white-gold hoops like Gretchen Wieners. Typically I’m not even home from school for Hanukkah, so it’s just a fun, cultural experience that my family (via video chat) or friends and I partake in each year, which usually includes the added bonus of a present or two (in which I both give to others and receive). 

In addition to Hanukkah, I also celebrate Christmas, a holiday that originated with religious significance and is now mainly an obligatory reason to spend money I don’t have on gifts for others in exchange for gifts from them that I don’t actually need or want. Additionally, Christmas serves as a convenient excuse for my mom to nag me to spend time with her. I know, there’s more to Christmas than presents and it’s more about being generous and getting into the “Christmas spirit” or whatnot but sometimes all the stress of finding gifts can turn me into a real Scrooge. Sometimes I want to throw in the towel with Christian Christmas and just have Jewish Christmas, which typically entails going to the movies and getting Chinese food, some of the only activities that are surprisingly open on Christmas Eve. But at the end of the day, I know that both holidays are extremely special and celebrating both has made me who I am today.

So sure, I’m a bit religiously confused. If there was a demographic box to check asking my religion I would check “prefer not to respond” or I guess maybe “other – multiple.” And yes, celebrating multiple holidays is a bit exhausting. But heck, I’m proud of my uniqueness and I’m lucky to be able to celebrate not one but two holidays present this “holiday” season. It’s a good thing I don’t celebrate Kwanzaa, too, or I’d be really overwhelmed. Although I’m not opposed to more celebrations — the more holidays, the merrier! Get it, merry…like Merry Christmas? Oy vey that was cheesy. Anyhow, this “holiday” season I wish you all a Merry Chrismukkah and a Happy Religiously Confused New Year!