By: Amelia-Rose Williams
Do you feel that? The sunlight is peaking in through the curtains and tickling your face for you to wake up, fresh snow has caressed the ground and school’s out! It’s Christmas, my most anticipated holiday and my favorite time of year. As long as I could remember, ever since I was a child, Christmas was always about family, traditions and love. I would always religiously get up at 7-8 in the morning, bright and breezy, to start the day. We’d have the little bags hanging from our door knobs on the outside that we’d stick Christmas cards that we’d make for each other in.Â
My parents would write a card for each of my siblings, including myself, as well as my grandparents. In exchange, we’d do the same, and everyone would have at least 2-3 cards. Right before Christmas Eve concluded, we’d put the cards in everyone’s bags overnight and promptly head to bed before Santa came. In the early part of my childhood, we would even wrap gifts together that we were giving to our extended family the night before.Â
As dawn cut through the mountains of my childhood home and the sun crept into my room as I eagerly awaited it to wake me up, I would start the morning by running into my parents’ room and knocking on their door excitedly. They knew it was me just by the knock alone, and always got me to help them begin the day by waking up my other family members. From there, we would gather together in the dining room, eat a decent-sized breakfast together, and then make our way into the living room, handing everyone’s gifts one by one by name and then opening them altogether.Â
After thanking each other, we would quickly make our way to our rooms, admiring our gifts and preparing to go to New York. My grandma’s house was where I first learned about the importance of traditions. Every single Christmas, we would go to her house like a routine; my grandma would prepare this ginormous meal that even with the three main families gathered, we weren’t ever able to finish. The cousins always grouped to talk about the new items that we got and what we plan to do with them. Never would we ever talk about school; it was beautiful and inspiring, like a warm hug.Â
When my grandma passed away in 2018, we were unsure of how we would continue this tradition. She was the matriarch of the family; she was the one who glued us together. We were shattered, and we are still trying to recover. In an attempt to reconcile the huge loss and the hole we are still trying to fill, we have created new traditions. Each year, we celebrate at a different household of the three main families. We bring food, love and good spirits, and just enjoy our time together as a family.Â
Although this time of year has now become bittersweet, I know the importance of tradition. I’ve seen the way it has glued our family together for years. I hope that as I grow older, I continue to remember the impact these traditions have left on me. I hope that I can create traditions that last a lifetime as I continue to live as evidence of the beautiful tradition my grandma began.