The holiday season is a big time of year for families to come together and enjoy one another. Every family has their own way of celebrating with customs that makes each holiday memorable.

“Traditions make you look forward to a certain time of the year and are a great way to celebrate the holidays,” sophomore Jessica James said. “They get you excited for what is yet to come. It brings families closer when they know they’re about to be together to celebrate a special day.”

Whether it’s Christmas, Three Kings Day or a holiday of another culture, traditions are celebrated in different ways.

“My siblings and I get up at like 6:30 or seven on Christmas morning and go wake my mom,” sophomore Kaitlyn Tatum said. “She makes us get in a line from youngest to oldest at the top of the stairs. She blocks off the opening into the living room so we can’t see our presents, and we each go down the stairs one step behind each other. After every step she stops us, and she videos the whole thing.”

Most traditions hold a story or meaning behind them that make it necessary to continue through time. For Tatum’s family, it is important to honor this tradition because it’s something their mom did when she was younger. Just like other traditions, their family wants to continue them for as long as possible.

Like the Tatums, sophomore Andrew Maglich has a family tradition they continue that has been passed down from one generation to another.

“Every year my twin sister, Amanda, and I get an ornament and a pair of pajamas as a Christmas present,” sophomore Andrew Maglich said. “We open them on Christmas Eve together. We’ve been doing this ever since we were little. I don’t know when we started it, but I can picture it for as long as I can remember. It’s meaningful to us because it’s a special thing from our mom.”

Continuing customs from other countries is also important to many families. Sophomore Naiomi Suarez said she looks forward to celebrating the holidays with her family the same way she used to in Puerto Rico.

“My family always makes rice and beans and tostones on both Thanksgiving and Christmas,” Suarez said. “My entire family prays before the holiday meal and then we dance to Salsa music. It’s our culture, and it shows we are proud of who we are and where we came from.”

All cultures have a different way of celebrating the holidays, from American traditions, to Philippine ones. Sophomore Khaleshca Abawan observes the Philippine customs each year with her family.

“Nine days before Christmas we do ‘Simbang Gabi,’ which means night mass,” Abawan said. “We attend church masses every night of those nine days. My family believes if you finish the whole nine days, the things you asked or wished for come true, but not materialistic things. Simbang Gabi is a time where our faith strengthens, and our relationship deepens with God.”

A similarity found between traditions of all cultures is that it allows people to come together during a time of gratitude and admiration of one another.

“Celebrating during the holiday season with family and friends is always special,” James said. “It is a unique time of the year when we can all get together and share our holiday spirit.”