Descriptive Essay Christmas

986 Words2 Pages

The clattering of pots and pans mixed with the sound of frantic instruction calling and family bickering wakes me up. I slowly get up, noting its only eight o’ clock in the morning and walk towards the stairs to leave the basement, being careful not to step on any one of the 15 cousins sleeping down there as well. As I open the door and walk up the stairs it is as if I’m in a different place.The therapeutic chaos of the adults signifies the start of our holiday season. There is christmas music blasting, some family cleaning the house, others decorating, others cooking; tonight is the highly anticipated annual Metro Italian Christmas Eve dinner, hosted at one of my aunts and there is so much work to be done. This is a tradition as important …show more content…

Like every year, we have not seen each other since last Christmas eve and so there is always a lot to talk about, the interminable bond between us is apparent from the second the front door is opened. We make sure to sit in the living room next to the door to give a friendly greeting to anyone who shows up. A loud “hey!” from all the adults as well as a warm hug are the typical greetings for anyone who walks in. When my cousin Nico walks in he immediately makes note of the cheetah skin wrapped around the base of the tree, his greeting is different; there is no loud “hey!” and the hug is more somber. Choosing to repress any sadness on this day of joy, we continue on with our day. The talking slowly increases again, more and more laughter is heard and within five minutes everything is back to normal. There are an array of trays of lasagna and baked ziti, the Feast of the Seven Fishes, vegetables, salads, ice cream, cake, cookies – a typical Italian American festeggiare. The smell of all the fishes fresh from the ocean, the sound of Andrea Bocelli mixed with soft chatter, and the sight of snow blanketing the street and rooftops encompass the atmosphere of our “normal” Christmas Eve. As we all sit down at the massive table stretching from one side of the room to the other, we have fifty chairs around the table, one of them left empty on …show more content…

I continue to view our Italian background to be the main reason that Christmas Eve is the most joyful, exciting, and vital tradition we celebrate together. Because of the amount of people in our family, road trips or hotels are an over-zealous option. Despite all of the adversities we face and setbacks in our day-to-day lives, simply being able to enjoy each other’s company never ceases to relieve us. For as long as I can remember, Christmas Eve has always been my favorite night of the year because spending time with loved ones is better than any gift under the tree. To my family, this is the true meaning of Christmas. As we are all winding down, we decide to have one more nod to her; we put her favorite boots on her

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