Students at San Dimas are just hours away from the beginning of winter break. Finals are coming to a close, and happy faces are abundant around campus. Not only is the first semester of the school year nearing its end, but Christmas is so close you can almost taste it.
When looking around at the different faces of San Dimas, I couldn’t help but think about the small traditions that my family sticks to around the holidays. Ever since I can remember, my mom and I have been going out on Christmas Eve and purchasing brand new pajamas to wear in order to bring in Christmas the following morning. This small, personal tradition means a lot to me. So I decided to ask around to see if anyone else had some quirky family traditions themselves.
One student, Nathaniel Seymour, a senior at San Dimas, said that every Christmas Eve he gets to open one gift. The catch is that he pretty much knows what is going to be inside; a game of some sort. No, I’m not talking about a video game. I’m talking about a board game, so that him and his family can sit down together on Christmas Eve and have a bit of fun in order to bring in the holiday spirit.
Noah Bonner, another senior at San Dimas, mentioned a “day after Christmas lunch”, where he and his family would all get together and have a small lunch party together. Instead of a Christmas dinner, he found that everyone seems much more alert and sociable the day after, rather than staying up late for a dinner on Christmas Day after you’ve been up since the crack of dawn.
I think that is why Christmas is so special; you get to personalize your experience to however your family runs. Everyone is so different, but family time will always hold a special place in people’s hearts, especially around the holidays.