There is nothing like sipping a hot cocoa and watching your favorite movie during the holidays. The smell of freshly baked cookies, spending time with friends and family and cold winter days are all aspects of the holiday season. But beyond these familiar customs, the celebration of diverse cultural traditions serve as a reminder of the richness of this time of year. Keeping diversity during the holidays allows people to understand the differences in the customs and beliefs of others. Cultural holidays bring communities together, fostering a sense of unity and solidarity. They provide opportunities for people from various backgrounds to interact, share experiences and build relationships.
Students at Woodbridge High share their customs from multiple ethnicities.
“One of our most major Vietnamese traditions is Lunar New Year, which is Tet. In it, we celebrate by worshiping our ancestors and giving money in red envelopes to younger members of our family,” senior Sophie Truong said.
For Vietnamese families, Tet is a time to honor their ancestors through rituals that reinforce a connection to the past. It is also a celebration of renewal, with families coming together to exchange wishes for prosperity and health in the coming year.
Tet is just one of many cultural celebrations around this time. It is an opportunity for people of Vietnamese culture to get together and mark the upcoming year. Lunar New Year is also celebrated in many other Asian countries to commemorate new beginnings and their ancestry. Recognizing certain holidays such as Tet, allows a better understanding of the differences in everybody’s customs and beliefs. Exploring and educating ourselves with different cultures helps to strengthen ourselves as well. As people become more connected to their background, feelings of isolation can subside, and turn them into confidence.
“I think [Diwali] helps me stay in touch with my roots and exposes me to different traditions, and tells me the history behind the holidays,” junior Saanvi Vootkuri said.
Diwali, the festival of lights, celebrates the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. For many, it is a deeply spiritual occasion with families lighting diyas (oil lamps), exchanging gifts and sharing meals that strengthen bonds with loved ones. Through this specific holiday, people who are a part of the Hindu culture are given the opportunity to get together with family and form strong bonds with their heritage. Quality time with family is extremely important in creating a meaningful holiday season.
People can enjoy the holidays with their families by building meaningful bonds and memories.
“We still keep the regular Christmas customs but we also have unique things that we do on Hanukkah and Christmas,” sophomore Vivian Kim said.
There are a plethora of events to be celebrated around this time, one of them being Hanukkah. Hanukkah is a holiday which celebrates Jewish culture with many traditions, such as lighting the menorah for each of the eight days it is celebrated. Some families celebrate both of these events in December, which ultimately connects Christian and Jewish religions and creates a more inclusive environment for friends and families.
People of all different cultures have the opportunities to acknowledge the diversity throughout our world. Being able to embrace our differences during this time can help us create a strong, welcoming and inclusive community. In the end, it does not matter if you exchange cultural stories, try new meals or simply just acknowledge different customs, the holidays are about making connections. It’s a special time to create vibrant bonds between all people where cultures are not just acknowledged, but
Celebrated.
