What The Holiday Season Means To Me by Jessica Longstreth

With winter break fast approaching for this school year, I though it appropriate to discuss what this time of year means to me. I hope that some of you readers can relate to what I feel during this season.

The holiday season, Christmas in particular, has been greatly commercialized. Just think about the heaps of presents and the great amount of money that is poured into Christmas each and every year. According to the findings of the American Research Association, in 2015, holiday retail sales raked up 600 billion dollars. However, when I think about Christmas and the holiday season, my main focus is not on the presents, or getting the most expensive gift for my family and friends -- these are just material things. Sure, I still get small gifts for my family and friends, and it's always nice to receive a gift from my loved ones. But my point is that the gifts are not the sole highlight of my winter break.

True holiday season in my family starts as early as Thanksgiving. What do I mean by true holiday season?  Well, I mean that theses are the times when I get to spend time with family members. Whether I see them often or rarely, this is the time of year when we all get to see each other once again. This aspect of the holiday season is perhaps my favorite. It's taking the time to have fun with my family and closest friends during this time that fills me with the most joy. Also, it doesn't hurt that holiday break is just a nice relief from the stresses of the normal school week. It allows me to take some time for myself and watch my favorite Christmas movie, Elf, or curl up on the couch with some hot chocolate. Speaking of delicious hot chocolate, I can't forget the other great part about the holiday season -- lots and lots of food!

So now I ask you, the reader, what does this holiday season mean to you? Look past the elaborate gifts. What brings you joy this holiday season?

The Christmas Song Book Tag | by Kristine Le

In light of the holiday season, I thought, “Why not be festive and try a holiday themed book tag?” So as a gift, here's my attempt at ‘The Christmas Song’ book tag.

Question 1:  “You’re a Mean One Mr. Grinch”: Name a villainous character you couldn’t help but love.

This is a hard one. For the most part, I’m the type of reader that as soon as a villain is introduced, I hate them. I hate them. I hate them and will be waiting for the protagonist do the right thing and kindly rip out their eyeballs. But, if I had to choose, it would be Sebastian from The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare. From the second he was introduced into the series, I loathed him because he would not stop ruining everything. It was as if every time he blinked something would go wrong. Nonetheless, I just could not see past his peculiar personality. He was just so lively and dark at the same time that it was impossible for me not to love him.

Question 2: “All I Want for Christmas is You”: Which book to you most hope to see under your Christmas tree?

The obvious answer for this question would be A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas because it is the first book in one of my all time favorite series and I have yet to own it but, a book I wish to see under the tree that I haven’t read would be either Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy by Cassandra Clare or The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. I’m in desperate need of Tale from the Shadowhunter Academy because I have been waiting for its release all year and it would just be the perfect book to start off the new year. The Song of Achilles is another “want” because recently my best friend read it and has not been able to stop talking about it. I’m curious to see if it lives up to the hype.

Question 3: “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”: Name a character that overcomes major obstacles and learns to believe in themselves.

I’m not sure if this is a perfect answer but the first character that came to mind when I saw this question was Ari from Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz. Throughout the entire course of the novel, Ari is struggling with different problems--mainly internal--and is just so lost and hopeless that nothing will ever change. Yet, as the story progresses Ari learns more about himself as person and is able to overcome all the issues that plagued him in the beginning. His story was so raw and beautiful, I think everyone would be able to walk away with something after reading it.

Question 4: “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”: a) Which character do you think would be on the top of the naughty list?

b) Which character do you think would be at the top of the nice list?

A character on the naughty list would hands down be Tamlin from A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas. Never have I ever read a character who was so downright selfish and narcissistic. His heart was in the right place but, oh god, I just could not read scenes that included him without wanting to throw the book across the room.

Moving on to a less frustrating topic, a character on the nice list would definitely be Rhysand from A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas. To put it vaguely, the things that Rhys does in this book are just incredible. His character is so down to earth and so selfless that it genuinely hurts my soul to read about him giving up everything, even himself, to protect the ones he cares about. If Rhys is not fit for the nice list then I don’t see how anybody else is.

Question 5:  “Frosty the Snowman”: Which book just melts your heart.

If I could, I would try and use A Court of Mist and Fury to answer all of these questions because I just loved that book to death, but that wouldn't make for a much interesting blog post. So, a book that melts my heart would have to be A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. This story-- I don’t even know how to even begin to explain this story. Roughly, it focuses on a boy named Connor and how, with a help of a monster, is able to come to terms with what is happening in his life currently. It may sound like a typical cliche but it is so, so much more. The book is both incredibly deep and meaningful and is just one of those stories that I think everybody would benefit from reading. It will definitely melt any reader's heart--if they have one.

Question 6: “Feliz Navidad”: Choose a book that takes place in a country other than your own.

Almost all of the books I read take place beyond this world but for a more appropriate answer, I’ll say The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North because it takes place in Russia and England.

Question 7: “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”: Which holiday themed book do you use to spread the Christmas joy?

Most people would easily answer this question with Harry Potter series by J.K Rowling but, since I have not read any of the Harry Potter books my answer is Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. Ironically, this book is said to be a fanfiction of the Harry Potter books and I guess to some effect if gives off that “Christmas joy” like the actual Potter books do. To be quite honest, this is probably the only “holiday” related book I’ve ever read…

Question 8:  “Sleigh Ride”: Which fictional character would you choose to spend the holidays with (doesn’t have to be a love interest!)

Is it bad that I already had an answer to this question before ever doing this tag? Well, what can I say, I like imagining myself in real life scenarios with my favorite fictional characters. A character I would choose to spend the holidays with would 100% be Dorian from The Throne of Glass series by Sarah J Maas. I honestly can’t think of a better person to share the holidays with because Dorian is such a warm, loving person, and justs fits right into the theme of the holiday season. Plus, I think he would give the best presents given that fact that he is a king.

Question 9: “Baby it’s Cold Outside”: Which book that you didn’t like would you sacrifice to a fire to warm yourself up in the cold?

Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes. I would not even think twice about sacrificing this book because it still frustrates me that I actually wasted my time and gave this book a chance.

Question 10: “Do you hear what I hear”: Which book do you think everyone should read?

I’ve probably already answered this question somewhere throughout this tag but another book I think everyone should read is I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson. This story is simply so cute and it just gave me all the reader feels when I read it. It is also very unique because it is told using dual perspective and the two narrators are twins, speaking from two different times period of their lives. One twin tells their story from their younger years while the other one tells it from when they are slightly older and as they each tell their individual stories, it eventually connect together in the end crafting a beautiful foolproof ending.

Student's Favorite Things About Christmas - Josie Embleton

      Christmas is just around the corner, and many students are excited for this holiday. I would like to find out what people are the most excited about, so I am going to ask a few students what their favorite things are.  Of the students that were interviewed, one of the most common answers were waking up on Christmas morning. I believe this is an important aspect of Christmas because after the whole holiday season it's exciting when the day finally comes. This leads into the next common answer  of the Christmas season. Many students' favorite thing about Christmas is the buildup of the Christmas season. This time is filled with holiday treats, cookies, lights, Christmas trees, shopping, and many other exciting things, so it is understandably one of the most common answers to this question. Another answer that many students said is spending time with family. This is a very important aspect of Christmas and many people's favorite thing. This holiday offers a time for everyone to come together and enjoy each other's company. The last common answer is the food that comes along with Christmas. Everybody loves cookies, chocolate, pies, ham, potatoes, and so much more, and it is definitely one of the most common favorite things about this holiday! With so much to look forward to during Christmas time, these are the most common student favorites.  

German Christmas Traditions - William Theilacker

Some people might assume that Christmas in other countries is the same as it is here, after all, why would it be different? However Christmas in Germany differs from Christmas in America in several ways. In Germany many of the children receive advent calendars. Advent calendars are cardboard or wooden calendars that count down the days in December till Christmas. Each day the child opens a box on the calendar and it contains a little chocolate or toy. In recent years the popularity of advent calendars has been rising in America however it is a German tradition. Christmas trees are a big part of the German Christmas as they are in America. However instead of decorating them as a family like we do in America the mother usually decorates them in secret if there are kids. Glass ornaments actually originated in Germany and weren't imported into America until the 1880s. Instead of opening presents on Christmas morning children normally open the majority of their presents on Christmas eve. Another German tradition that is becoming big in America are German Christmas Markets. These markets sell all different types of traditional German food and all of the goods the vendors sell are handmade, such as woodwork. On December 6th, St Nicholas's Day, the children leave their shoes by the door and he is said to leave small gifts and sweets in their shoes. In certain areas of Germany Krampus, a big horned monster with chains, is said to follow St Nicholas and punish all of the bad children. Another tradition is the Sternsinger or star singers . Children go out caroling in groups of four, three of them dressed as wise men and the last one carries a stick with a star on it to symbolize the Star of Bethlehem. They go around caroling and collect money for charity. So in the end, while the principle is the same, German and American transitions differ in varying degrees. And certain German traditions are making their way into America. So as they say in Germany, Frohe Weihnachten!