The air is getting colder. Frost begins to coat the ground in the early mornings. Students are anxiously counting down the days until the start of winter break. Time to spend with your family and friends, filled with joy and warmth. As students break off to celebrate the festivities, here are some of the unique holiday traditions that some Hackley students have.

Junior Emma Friedberg celebrates both Christmas and Hanukkah, and a unique experience she and her family take part in is the fun present exchange, White Elephant. The wacky gift exchange starts out with everyone bringing a gift of their own and picking numbers to select who can take a gift from the pile first. Once they unwrap their present, they can either choose to keep what they received or trade it with another player. After three rounds of picking and stealing, each person is left with a new and funny gift. Emma and her family partake in this tradition every year and it is a tradition that she truly enjoys.

“It’s always fun to watch all of us open the presents. We try to buy really funny gifts for one another to make it more competitive and exciting to watch. For example, last year my dad got stuck with a really ugly Christmas sweater and we still tease him about it to this day,” Emma said.

Sophomore Sydney Morris has a fun Christmas Eve activity where she and her cousins go bowling every year. While many families spend the time exchanging presents or eating a big meal, Sydney spends the time lacing up her bowling shoes and knocking down pins. For as long as she can remember, this tradition of bowling every Christmas Eve has been one of her favorites, and is always a good time to connect with her relatives. The competition and liveliness of the game has always brought in the holiday cheer and is a tradition that she wants to maintain for as long as she can.

“It’s always a really meaningful experience for me. I’m able to have fun with my cousins, and my grandma even tags along sometimes, making the whole tradition something I always look forward to,” Sydney said.

There are also many traditions that people participate in on New Year’s other than watching the iconic ball drop in Times square and setting new goals. Junior Aran Basu has a tradition where he and his family walk a bridge every New Year. Whether it be the Brooklyn Bridge or the Manhattan Bridge, he and his family always enjoy taking a walk and looking at the view from the top to welcome in the New Year. This tradition has been one that he and his family started a few years ago, and one that he hopes to continue. Aran also makes sure to visit the Rockefeller tree every year during the holiday season in New York City. The huge tree is always decked out in lights and ornaments, and it is something that really starts the holidays for him and his loved ones.

“It’s a great way to connect with my family and start fresh,” Aran said, “I love picking a new bridge to walk every year and seeing the tree lit up. I hope to keep these traditions alive for as long as I can.”