Whether it is the festive music or blinding Christmas lights, the students at Baruch have a lot to say about what the holidays mean to them. 

Junior Anabel Suriel says her favorite holiday is a tie between Thanksgiving and Christmas because her family throws exciting holiday parties. She partakes in extreme decorating and large family gatherings for Christmas.

“It looks like Santa threw up in my house,” she said. 

Suriel strongly believes the Christmas season starts November 1st. She kicks off the holiday season with winter shopping, excessive decorations and most importantly, Christmas music.

Junior Wilson Huang agrees the festivity of Christmas should be celebrated thoroughly. “It just really impresses my eyes,” Huang said. However, Huang says the true holiday season starts “whenever Mariah Carey says so,” meaning whenever stores start playing “All I want for Christmas is You” on repeat. 

Teachers also agree the holidays cannot come too early. Pre-Calculus, Calculus and AP Statistics teacher, Laird Jonas, thinks the holidays are a wonderful time of year when families can get together and spread kindness. He shares that New Year’s Eve is his favorite holiday. He celebrates by “going to church” or staying home and “reflecting on the year.”

Jonas says that while he does not always participate in the decoration of his house, he enjoys the joy that his family receives from the holiday spirit. At this time, he has a tradition of going to breakfast by his sister’s house with “such good food.” 

Jonas said he doesn’t mind when people begin decorating in late summer because he envisions Christmas as a “state of mind.” He–and many others–believe that the holidays have become very “materialized.” If you are decorating your house early, it should be about your spirit and spending time with loved ones. 

“If Christmas is about being nice to each other, then we should have Christmas all year,” he said.