“ ‘Twas the night before finals
And all through the college
The students were praying
For last minute knowledge”
To be honest, I love being in school, I like my teachers and my classes but I am so happy that is December 9 and I have officially finished my classes for the semester. Now, there is so much to look forward to, the completion of my tests and then in ten days I get to visit my parents in Norway. I am incredibly excited!
My family is very close, we’re only physically separated by land and water but otherwise we still talk everyday (thank goodness for advanced technology… and that my Dad’s finally learned how to use it). In the past we’ve had our few traditions such as stockings with little knickknacks for each of my parents and my brother and I, we build our holiday puzzle and play games. Christmas is my favourite time of year because I love the expressions on their faces when they unwrap their gifts I’ve thoughtfully picked out and basically the best part is the time we get to spend together – all together – as a family, nothing could be better.
Our family has spent Christmas away from home on a couple of occasions, once in Mexico and the other time in Hawaii. It’s fun having the opportunity to see how other people celebrate the Holiday’s and we’ve brought some of those traditions back with us. For instance, in Mexico on New Year’s Eve it’s tradition at midnight to eat twelve green grapes and wash it down with a glass of champagne and a wish within the first minute of the New Year. We experienced that in Mexico about ten years ago and we still do it every New Year. After we drink our champagne and make our wish we seal the deal by jumping out into the snow, which is definitely an experience when you’re sitting in the hot tub and jump out into the snow (brrr…)
In Hawaii, we attended a Luau on Christmas Day which is in the picture above and for New Year’s Eve we had a family games night and watched fireworks over the ocean which was absolutely beautiful. This time, rather than jumping in the snow we got to jump into warm sand and water. As a family we drove around and looked at the lawn Holiday décor which often consisted of surfing Santa’s and light-up snowflakes hanging from palm trees.
Now, we have the opportunity to spend another beautiful Christmas together, and add new experiences from Norway and their culture. I hope that each and every student, faculty and everyone else that is a part of the college enjoy their holiday and get some rest before the hectic winter semester begins.
Feliz Navidad – Spanish (Mexico)
Mele Kalikimaka me ka Hau’oli Makahiki Hou – Polynesian (Hawaii)
God Jul Og Godt Nytt Aar – Norwegian (Norway)
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Happy Holidays Everyone
