Descriptive Reflection Year 7 - School Assignment

A Family Celebration I’ll Never Forget

            Every religion in this world has their own special celebration. For Muslims they have “Ramadhan”, fro Hindu’s they have “Nyepi”, for Buddhist’s they have “Waisak”, while for Christians and Catholics, they have the most well known celebration in the world, which is “Christmas”. As my whole families are full of Christians and Catholics we all have the same special celebration of the year, which is Christmas. For some people, Christmas might just be another religious holiday where all offices and schools are on vacation but for my family, Christmas is not only about holidays and vacation but it’s all about Jesus and family.

            Walking into the hall, praising and singing to God, hearing some words of God by a Pastor, and reflecting back from the beginning of the year until that day. That’s what my family and I always do in Church during the Christmas holiday season. As Christmas is part of my family’s culture and tradition, currently the knowledge that Christmas is not only about vacation, going to church, holidays, or meeting extended family but it’s also about the birth of Jesus. Every year, my family and I always commemorate the day when Jesus was born. Besides going to church, my family also often goes to religious sites such as Mary’s Cave “Goa Maria” which is located in Central Java specifically in an area called “Ambarawa”. Every time I go there, the smell of the ancient cave, candles, and flowers remind me of pasts Christmas. Just like other people who had gone there, my family and I give flowers and light candles for Mary’s statue, which is located in front of the cave. In my opinion, the purpose of giving flowers and lighting candles for the Mary’s statue is to thank her for the blessings that God has gave us during the year and ask for blessings for the upcoming year. For me, that place will always make me feel nostalgic as I can remember my past Christmas celebrations and rituals.

            Besides going to churches and participating in religious events, my extended family, and I always meet at my grandmother’s house to gather up and celebrate Christmas together. Every time I step in to my grandmother’s house, the smell of fried mashed potato and hot chicken soup always strikes my mind and force me to open my mouth and eat them. That’s why almost every Christmas season my extended family always gains a lot of weight due to my grandma’s food. Another thing that I like the most in my grandma’s house is the smell of ancient decorations and the rusty fireplace which reminds me of my childhood where I used to play with eh decorations and hide beside the fireplace. After having a good meal of my unique grandma’s food, my whole family and I, never forget to play ancient games. The adults in my family usually play cards while my cousins and I usually play a traditional board game called “Karambol”. As most of the game, are ancient and old, sometimes the game board or machine might not work and make weird sounds. That’s why, most of the time when my family played these ancient games, we laugh heartily and continuously.

             In my family, there are no celebrations without decorations. Every year, my extended family and I never miss a Christmas season to decorate our houses. The flashing colorful small light bulbs light up my house while the green and thick mistletoe gives my front door a whole new appearance. Besides these Things, my family also never forgets to put up the bright red and white Christmas stockings and last but not least, the majestic green Christmas tree. Almost every member of my family decorates their house with Christmas decoration including my grandparents. Even though they are a bit old and slow at decorating the different parts of each of their houses, they have very good taste especially at interior design. To hasten their work, my family always helps them to fill their houses with Christmas decorations. That’s the fun part of decorating houses, while one of the most annoying processes is taking down all of the decorations after the 12 days of Christmas. Taking the decorations down is always an annoying period of time as we need to pack all of the things into one group and tidy them up in order. All my family members have to take time doing that including my cousins and I as we always wanted to spend the rest of the time playing games. Even though it’s annoying, it’s our responsibility to clean up the house after the celebration. So, as a “good” person, I help my family to clean up the decorations.

            In conclusion, Christmas is a family celebration that I’ll never forget because I need to celebrate it every year. For me, besides having fun with the rest of the family, the main point of Christmas is to celebrate the day when Jesus was born and to reflect back on the part years. Not only in me, but for the rest of my family too. Christmas is something that my family looks forward to all year long, which needs to be celebrated and commemorated. I believe that everybody has their own unforgettable family celebration and it would be such a great thing to share it with other people.