Brian Kostiw-It’s about that time of year again. The holiday season has returned and with it comes presents, family time, Christmas songs and movies, and best of all, Christmas break. When we are with our families this holiday season remember, we are not the only ones celebrating. Christmas traditions spread much farther than the U.S. mainland in which most of us have spent our entire lives. With the help of Sutton High School’s very own, Señora Sofia Hernandez, we will explore what Christmas is like in Puerto Rico.
Upon arriving to interview Mrs. Hernandez, I started off by asking her What her traditions were when she used to celebrate the holidays back in Puerto Rico. She responded, telling me how, “During the holiday season we would all gather at my grandmother’s house for dinner, music, dancing, and be together with the family…Our Christmas season starts right after Thanksgiving and continue all the way until January 6th. On January 6th we celebrate the Three Kings’ Day. The day before Three Kings’ Day, children would go outside with a shoebox and gather grass for the Kings’ camels and put it under their beds. The Kings visit that night and leave gifts for them. Also during Christmas, we have what is called “parrandas” which is Christmas caroling. In “parrandas”, a small group of people get the party started by surprising a friend at their house with music…They usually start after 10pm so that you are woken up in surprise…Usually, things wrap up around daybreak, with the last house typically providing something hearty like a stew”. In addition to these foods she also included her favorite holiday meal, a roasted pork, rice and pigeon beans, sweet ham with pineapple, and potato salad. She also mentioned how her favorite Christmas song is “Silent Night” and that her favorite Christmas movie is The Grinch since both promote peaceful and good spirited messages throughout.
Then I asked if any of the aforementioned traditions have changed since she has moved, She said that the main holidays themselves and the food have not changed that much but that, “the parranda has changed as it is cold in December and people tend to be indoors more often. So instead of dressing up for Christmas Eve and going out for Parrandas, I put on my PJs and have my family over and we spend time together inside the house with food and music.” Even though some traditions had to be modified, this hasn’t stopped her from passing down traditions to the rest of her family. One of these traditions being her favorite, on Three Kings’ Day. Saying, “My kids still follow the Three Kings’ traditions. When the ground isn’t totally covered with snow, they go out to get some pretty dry grass and put it in the shoebox under their bed.”
The final question I had for Ms. Hernandez was about what the holidays mean to her. Her response sums up this article better than I ever could as she says “The holidays mean family, friends, food, music, dancing, kindness, and love. However, the holidays also remind me that we don’t have to wait until the month of December to feel this way or act in a certain way or even spend time with our loved ones. We can celebrate all of these year long. The holidays put things in perspective for me… it makes me remember that we should be kind all year long and that no matter what season of the year it is, the most important part of our lives, is not about a Christmas tree, or decorations, or even the gifts- instead is about reminiscing what life has given us every single day of the year and treat everyone with love and respect regarding what time of the year it is.”
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