By Maddie Jewett

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons user RandompersonSWE.

With the holiday season approaching, everyone is starting to feel a little sparkle of magic in the air. Everyone celebrates the holiday season differently, and that’s what makes it special. People are excited to hang wreaths, get Christmas trees and decorate them, Elves appear on shelves, holiday light tours begin, and the festivities can go on for days. 

My family does all of the “normal” Christmas traditions, such as an Elf on the Shelf, hanging stockings, baking Christmas cookies, and decorating gingerbread houses. Similarly, Lawson Vaughan (’25) says she has a “pretty traditional and normal Christmas,” which usually consists of having a nice breakfast, opening gifts, and then lounging around the house with family for the day. As much as my family does almost all of the regular traditions leading up to Christmas, we do Christmas Day in a nontraditional way.

My family’s Christmas Day has four parts. We travel around Richmond all day, making all of our stops. First, my mom, dad, sister and I have our Christmas at my house in the morning. After that, we head to my mom’s side of the family for Christmas, Part II and a relaxing and long Christmas brunch. Then we headed to my dad’s side of the family for the afternoon. We close out the day by spending the evening with close family friends. 

Cousins at bat. Spot the beanie used to cover the eyes, and the old broom stick used to hit the piñata.

The chaos and non-traditional part of Christmas occurs when we are with my dad’s side of the family. The afternoon brings out a different sort of Christmas custom. This tradition began many years ago, when my dad somehow brought a piñata to Christmas for a joke. Over 10 years later, the piñata is now a staple of our Christmas Day. 

We vary the batting order every year, deciding who gets to hit the piñata first. Sometimes it’s oldest to youngest, sometimes it’s tallest to shortest, but the goal is usually that my three teenage boy cousins don’t get to completely demolish it before everyone else goes. 

You get spun around three times, and then the classic yellow beanie that we have used for years gets brought out and pulled over your eyes, so you cannot see the target. This occurs in my grandfather’s garage, and the piñata is tied to a metal bar on the ceiling. Then we get spun around three times again, and it is time to play. The pinata is usually pretty hard to get down, and it takes everyone around two tries to bust it open. Once it breaks, we run to get all the very exciting trinkets, like candy and small toys, inside the special piñata. The piñata has varied in design. We have had a hamburger, rocket ship, ice cream cone, and many more exciting designs. My dad is in charge of “stuffing” the piñata, and each year it is filled with new and more random goodies. 

A Slappy Hand on a dollar bill.

About five years ago, one of the prizes inside the pinata was some slappy hands. My sister and four cousins adore this tradition. Somehow we began playing with them, and we then decided that a dollar bill was the perfect thing to put on the ground and try to fish for. Many years later, this has now become a staple of our Christmas Day festivities. All six of us gather around in a circle, and we start going in order, one right after the other, trying to get the dollar bill from the middle of the circle. The dollar bill amount starts at $1 and then gets as high as $20. This game is something that I look forward to every year. As I get older, I am much more excited to spend time with my family and be together rather than look forward to what is under the tree. 

Every year, my cousins and I go to Skate Nation the day after Christmas. When we were younger, we would be sad and bored after Christmas, so our parents suggested ice skating. We love going, and it gives us something to look forward to after the buildup of Christmas. Similarly, Clarkie Ackerly (‘24) and her family put on matching shirts and go bowling every year. They have teams: the Princes and the Poppers. They call themselves the “Boxing Day Bowlers,” after the traditional British name for December 26, Boxing Day.

Family at Skate Nation on December 26, 2022.

Upper School English class teacher and Match advisor Vlastik Svab also has some interesting Christmas memories. His traditions go back to his roots. He was born in what is now the Czech Republic, and the Czech Christmas tradition is that you open Christmas presents on Christmas Eve, as opposed to Christmas morning. According to Svab, “Santa is not the one bringing presents—Baby Jesus (Ježíšek) is.” 

He and his family would have Christmas Eve dinner, and then he and his sister would go upstairs and hide in their rooms while his dad was downstairs, talking to Jesus at the front door while he was delivering their gifts. Svab says, “My father would ring the doorbell and pretend to have a conversation with Baby Jesus, in Czech: ‘Hello Baby Jesus! Oh wow, you have so many presents… But the kids were terrible this year!… Well, ok, I guess you can come in…’” While his father was “talking to Jesus,” his mom would be busy putting their gifts under the tree. Once she was done setting up the presents, his dad would yell, “Goodbye, Baby Jesus! See you next year!” and slam the front door. After that, he and his sister would rush down the stairs, eager to open the presents, and they played with their new toys until late in the night.

Each year I realize more and more that Christmas is not about presents and new things; it is about spending time with loved ones, doing whatever makes you happy. Each family is different, and they value their special traditions. I love hearing what other people do on Christmas to celebrate, but I would never trade my traditions, because they make the day even better.

All photos courtesy of Maddie Jewett except where indicated.