OPINION

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By Jack Bradley

My favorite holiday is Christmas. I prefer Christmas over any other holiday because of the happiness the activities, traditions, and spirit bring to me. 

The Bradley family Christmas tree. Photo credit: Jack Bradley.

Putting up a Christmas tree is one of my favorite traditions during the holiday season. Each year, my dad will come home one night, and I will have to help him carry in the tree through the back of our house. The tree creates total chaos in our living room. First is the mess the pine needles make, and second is the countless minutes we spend attempting to get the tree perfectly straight. We spend the rest of the night decorating the tree with Christmas music playing in the background.

Christmas music is best played starting at the end of November. This is the prime time to be able to execute a fantastic holiday season. On Sirius XM, there are 17 different holiday channels, and most of them are Christmas channels. There are almost ten thousand songs with “Christmas” in the title, and  that does not even include songs like “Jingle Bells.” I enjoy listening to Christmas music because it puts me in the Christmas spirit and makes me joyful, because I know I am going into a season full of giving and love. My favorite Christmas song has to be “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” by Brenda Lee, because it is upbeat and is played in my favorite Christmas movie.

Home Alone movie poster. Image credit: Warner Bros. 

There are countless Christmas films. The best, of course, is the 1990 classic Home Alone. If you do not know already, Home Alone is about an eight-year-old boy named Kevin McCallister who is accidentally left at home by his family on Christmas break. Kevin embarks on a journey of providing for himself while protecting his house from robbers. Watching Christmas movies is better than watching scary Halloween movies, as because nothing can top the spirit that Christmas movies bring to the season. These movies bring a sense of warmth and comfort to me. 

Tacky light tours are something I look forward to every year as well, whether it is with family or friends. Seeing all of the decorations and different setups each year and knowing that these people put countless hours into decorating their houses makes it even better.

I love going through 8720 River Road, just over a mile from Collegiate. This house can’t be missed if you are driving on River Road in December. The house has its own little world to it. When driving through, the house has lights on either side, and they even have accompanying music. I also enjoy going to 9606 and 9604 Asbury Court in Henrico. These houses have been putting up lights for 40 years. My favorite thing about this house is the hot chocolate. The owners of the house sit at a table at the top of the driveway selling hot chocolate for a dollar or two. The owners use this money to pay for the high electrical bill. The hot chocolate is refreshing to drink while looking at the lights. 

9606 and 9604 Asbury Court. Photo credit: Richmond Times Dispatch.

As with many families, Christmas comes with an abundance of traditions. Each year, my family gathers at my grandparents’ house, and we spend Christmas Eve together. As children, my two cousins, my brother, and I would wait impatiently for our family to come together in the living room to open presents in the evening. This has been a tradition for us ever since I can remember.

Whit Wallace (‘23) has similar memories, saying, “my family always goes to my grandparents’ house, and all my cousins are there. It is consistently great to see the majority of my family all together.”

Another one of my family’s traditions is Christmas morning, when my grandfather comes over. We open gifts together and have brunch at our house. Will Slater (‘23) says he also cherishes “the feeling of walking downstairs Christmas morning.”

Christmas is also the season of giving. For a few years, my mother would take us down to The Virginia Home, where we would sing carols to the residents, bringing smiles to all of our faces. This also brought glee to me and my fellow carolers. The love and joy surrounding Christmas make it the best holiday.