Essay ‘My Plans for Christmas’

Christmas traditions hold the value of family. What would Christmas be without practicing these traditions? Traditions keep families together, passed down, generation to generation. Sometimes they even teach you of your roots. As a kid, these traditions are what make your holidays special, granted when you are six years old all that's on your mind is presents. The more you mature you become, the more you learn and understand the true values of Christmas. That it isn’t about the gifts, it’s about family and giving back to the people you care for. Growing up, it was only my mom and I, so my mom was the one to always keep these traditions alive. There are plenty of holiday traditions but my favorites happened during Christmas time. We’d bake cookies, watch the Santa Radar and I’d get one present before bed.

Starting with the Santa Radar, which allows us to see where in the world Santa is. My mom and I would be sitting in the living room and one of us would always say, “LET’S SEE WHERE SANTA IS!”. Then, she would set the Santa Radar up on her computer, and every once and awhile, we would run over to see how close he was. Once Santa would get to England, we would start on making his cookies.

We would make sugar cookies, not chocolate chip, not oatmeal raisin, ALWAYS sugar cookies. And we’d cut them to be shaped like all things Christmas. Snowmen, Christmas trees, Gingerbread men, etc. Watching the cookies brown and bake, and smelling the warm sugar, wafting from the oven, was only half the fun. Decorating would always be turned into a competition of whose was better and we’d give the winners cookies to Santa. After filling our bellies with a ridiculous amount of messed up cookies, we’d set out a plate of the nicest ones, hoping Santa would enjoy them, as much as we enjoyed making them. Now, as a kid cleaning the mess was horrid, no child wants to clean a big mess; Especially one they’re responsible for!

After we set out the cookies and milk, I would get ready for bed and for the best part of the night, getting to open one present! My mom would always pick my present for me, and of course, I’d be clueless to what it is. Typically, it would be a movie. And despite wanting to watch it right then and there, I’d have to wait until the next morning while opening my other presents. Once I opened my present my mom and I would go back to the Santa Radar and right as he got to New York it was time for bed. When I was little, I would always try to pretend to sleep and try to see the one and only, Santa Claus. I never actually got to see him, so I would just peek into my stocking, before finally falling asleep.

Christmas is an amazing family filled holiday, that I have loved since I was little. Out of the three traditions my favorite was opening one present before bed, never truly knowing what special something my mom picked out for me each year. As I grow up, I realize more and more how much these traditions mean, big or small. And that it’s important to always remember to keep traditions alive through the years and keep your family close during the holidays. 

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