Christmas Eve

By Jasmine Houlder (10th Grade)

Every year on Christmas Eve my family opens our presents in the tradition of German customs. After dinner, we all head into my living room where presents encircle the tree to the point where it's hard to walk with the amount of people in the living room. My mom's side of the family always spends Christmas Eve with us, my cousins visit their other side the next day and we visit my mom's parents on Christmas day. It's my favorite day of the year and I'm so happy I get to spend it with loved ones. Christmas Eve has almost become more important to my family than Christmas because we celebrate with our family we don't get to see very frequently. My cousin is the person I'm closest to in the world and unfortunately, I don't get to see her that often so this time is very special for us. 

We have many customs and traditions we practice throughout the night but the main one is eating the Bûche De Noël. A French tradition in my family which we do every year. A Bûche De Noël is a cake in the shape of a log, which is important to my family as we carry on these traditions. I look forward to this night the entire year because of how fun and warm it is to be around my family, celebrating together every Christmas Eve. When I think back to old memories of past years I feel nostalgic and remember how it's always been such a big part of my upbringing from such a young age. I'm so grateful to be able to spend my favorite day with my loved ones and make new memories every year.