By Alora Peters, Editor-in-Chief
Mention the word “Christmas” today in conversation, and it might be in reference to holiday music blaring in the supermarket, watching feelgood Hallmark movies, or the looming threat of supply-chain pandemonium. However, when we reflect back on our Christmas memories, worries about gift lists or decorations seldom make the list of ‘most meaningful.’ Our most precious memories are oftentimes tied to time spent with family and friends, to time spent giving to others, and to time spent reflecting on the true nature of the Christmas season. Here are some favorite Christmas traditions and memories from members of the Saint Leo University community.
A Saint Leo Tradition
Christmas is a time to practice generosity and charity, in the spirit of the first and greatest Christmas gift, the Christ Child.
One Christmas tradition of giving originated very close to Saint Leo’s campus.
“Each year, over the last nine years, my family hosts on-campus stranded students for both Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner,” said Joseph Cillo, who teaches criminal justice and law at Saint Leo.
Prior to COVID-19 hitting Florida, Cillo and his family would welcome a number of students who were not able to travel back home to celebrate with family.
“There were seven students and one faculty member at our last Thanksgiving dinner,” said Cillo. “We have had as many as eleven students at one time. It’s always a great day to share with others.”
Also, in attendance for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner are Cillo’s parents, who enjoy interacting with the students.
“They ask the students questions all the time—where do you see yourself in the future, how did you get here,” said Cillo. “The whole table gets to benefit from diverse backgrounds and conversations.”
Cillo’s father was the one who inspired him to begin the tradition of inviting Saint Leo community members for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.
“My father worked at a teaching hospital,” Cillo explained. “He’d always be bringing home stranded residents and interns. As kids, we always had stranded medical students.”
His own experience as a stranded student also influenced his decision.
“I learned how lonely ‘alone’ was when I was in graduate school over the holidays,” Cillo said.
Cillo plans to host students again for Thanksgiving and Christmas this year.
“It is my hope that any student stranded on campus will find a welcoming place to spend the holidays,” he stated.
Celebrating Saint Nicholas’ Day
Not all Christmas traditions and festivities begin on Dec. 25—for example, the feast day of Saint Nicholas’ is celebrated on Dec. 6 by many Christian communities to honor Saint Nicholas of Myra, a fourth-century bishop who is considered the inspiration for the modern legend of Santa Claus.
“This is the start of the Christmas season for me,” said Adam Keselicka, a junior majoring in criminal justice at Saint Leo’s university campus, who explained his family’s tradition of celebrating St. Nicholas’ Day.
“The night before we put out our shoes,” he said. “Some families will put out hay for St. Nicholas’ horse.”
In the morning, Keselicka and his family would awake to find their shoes filled with small gifts, such as Christmas ornaments and chocolate gold coins. Keselicka stated that this celebration is particularly significant for him because it reminds him of his grandmother.
“Shortly before she passed away, she had trouble reading the letters on one of the gold coins,” said Keselicka. He explained how he and his father helped her to read it. Now, the gold coins always recall the memory of his grandmother while she was still alive.
The Novena de Aguinaldos
There are many traditions throughout the season of Advent that are practiced in preparation for the joyful celebration of Christmas. One tradition leading up to Christmas Day is that of the Novena de Aguinaldos. Angelica Molina, a sophomore attending the university campus who is majoring in global studies, and her family pray the novena for the nine days leading up to Dec. 24.
“Every day my family gathers in a different family house to pray the novena and share some food and traditional Christmas songs,” said Molina. “Family members that live abroad come during this time to pray and eat with the family. I feel this is a time when we connect with each other.”
The tradition of the Christmas novena is something Molina has practiced with her family her entire life.
“This tradition has been in my family ever since I have memory,” she said. “I remember I started to learn how to read by reading the novenas.”
A Polish Christmas Tradition
Many Christmas traditions have come to the Saint Leo community from different countries and cultures across the globe. Lisa Grandominico, a WorldWide sophomore who is majoring in clinical psychology, shared a tradition she inherited from her mother.
“My mother was Polish—100 percent,” said Grandominico. “Dad broke her out of a Nazi concentration camp during World War II and brought her back here to America. Many of Mothers’ memories and teachings remained with her.”
For Grandominico, one of her mother’s Christmas traditions stood out the most to her.
“For one to two days before Christmas, mom cleaned our already immaculate house because Jesus was coming,” said Grandominico. “No matter how we begged to get out of our share of cleaning, mom stood firm.”
Grandominico recalled the story her mother would tell her leading up to every Christmas.
“She said, ‘Jesus will be here and we have to make things nice and comfortable for Jesus and His weary believers, especially the animals that shared their home for our Savior,’” Grandominico said. “’For on the evening before Jesus is born, the animals will have the ability to speak.’”
Grandominico and her mother would then set out a plate of food and, under the family table, a bowl of water for the animals.
“Many years later, I can recall how excited I would be to hear the animals talk,” said Grandominico. “I waited up all night to hear the donkey and sheep talk until sleep carried me off.”
Grandominico continues to carry on her mother’s tradition today.
“My dear, brave mother has been gone for a long time, but every year I scrub my house clean just before Christmas in preparation for Jesus and His talking animals,” she said. “I have passed on this tradition to my child and many others throughout the years.”
Christmas Dinner
No discussion of Christmas traditions would be complete without mentioning Christmas dinner and the sense of fellowship that accompanies a delicious family meal.
Vittoria Bonsanti-Feniello, a junior majoring in computer information systems, explained one of her family’s favorite Christmas dishes.
“On Christmas, we eat the typical Venezuelan dish called ‘Hallaca,’ which is made out of cornmeal and stuffed with beef, pork, raisins, and olives, and then wrapped in a banana leaf,” she said. “The most memorable part of this celebration is praying before eating and giving a speech about how thankful we are to be together.”
“Everyone should enjoy every moment with family and friends,” Bonsanti-Feniello concluded. “You never know when it will be the last day you can hug them or tell them how much you love them.”
