As exams are winding down, it is okay to give ourselves permission to be 100 percent ecstatic for the upcoming holiday break. Personally, when I think about the holidays, the first thing that comes to my mind is tradition. Traditions have always held my family together, and it's safe to say that a majority of these occur during Christmas.
Every year, my family comes over to my house for Christmas Eve. My mom cooks a ton of amazing food, namely hot spinach and artichoke dip and little smokies (if you don't know what these are, educate yourself, please). There's always hot cider, and a good time is had by all. A fairly new tradition that my family has adopted is dressing up for Christmas Eve. Our pictures all started to look the same, so we began to have themes associated with each year's Christmas. So far we've done "Tacky Prom," "Tacky Tourists," and "Pajama Party," and this Christmas, the theme is "Country Western." Everyone dresses up, and we take outrageous pictures in front of the tree. We always play Apples to Apples as well, and then my uncles and aunts usually leave early, because they're lame about it (if you're reading this, I mean that). My parents let my sister and I open one gift on Christmas Eve, usually super cute pajamas. Then we go to bed, usually after watching "Christmas Vacation" for the millionth time.
On Christmas morning, my sister and I wake up at an ungodly hour and wait to open gifts. My room is on the top floor of the house, and hers is on the bottom, so Mom and Dad make us wait at the top of our respective staircases while they get everything ready. We take way too many silly pictures as we open gifts, and then we eat whatever amazing breakfast Mom has made. Later, we go to Nana's house, and then to our aunt and uncle's.
This all may seem like your run-of-the-mill Christmas routine, and that's kind of the point. You see, somewhere along the way, the relatively tame memories are the ones that you just might cherish the most. There's something about the consistency of a time-tested tradition that makes you feel as though you truly have a place in the world. As you begin to receive gifts during your Christmas vacation, think about the gift of tradition. The people you spend your time with during the holidays, the people that you bond with and make memories with - they just may be the greatest gifts of all. We take these events for granted so often, when in reality, they make life worthwhile. So, what's your Christmas story?
