Junior shows love of the holidays through many Christmas sweaters

Junior Emma DeWitt embraces the holiday season with her collection of themed objects and clothes.

Most everybody loves the holiday season, full of gifts, kindness and joy, but does anyone enjoy it more than junior Emma DeWitt?

Although she said she doesn’t participate in the religious aspect of the season, DeWitt said it is more than just that to her. “I really like the spirit of the holiday. I like dressing up in Christmas sweaters and playing in the snow,” DeWitt said.

She said buying and wearing Christmas sweaters is what got her obsessed with everything Christmas.

 “One year for our Christmas card, we all dressed in Christmas sweaters, and since then I’ve been going to Goodwill to find more and more. I have Christmas sweaters for every weekday of December. I wear one Christmas sweater on Nov. 1, and this year I wore one on Oct. 1. Even though I got ridiculed, I just blocked out the haters,” DeWitt said. 

For DeWitt, dressing up for the season is not just limited to humans. She said, “For Halloween I dressed up my dog, Farley, as a gingerbread man. He also has an elf collar that jingles when he walks around.”

She said believes that Christmas should be celebrated year round, but that the best time for decorating is Nov. 1. She said, “Thanksgiving is an OK time to decorate, but it definitely needs to be done before December.”

The people around her don’t always agree to that. “My family thinks I’m a little bit weird when it comes to my love of Christmas, but when the holiday season does come around, they get much more into the spirit,” she said.

Even though they aren’t as obsessed with the holiday as she is, DeWitt said that they always make time to put up their biggest Christmas tree together as a family.

“My family has a tradition of watching ‘A Christmas Story’ every Christmas Eve, and since the family in that movie eats at a Chinese restaurant after they burn the turkey on Christmas Eve, my family for the past five years has eaten at a Chinese restaurant on Christmas Eve as well.”

Even though each year her family watches ‘A Christmas Story,’ it is not her favorite Christmas movie. She said that her favorite is truly “Elf.” She said that it is her favorite because it is so funny.

She also has a love for Christmas music. She said her two favorites are “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey and “Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays” by *NSYNC

She said, “I used to walk around my house with a speaker and sing to these songs.”

Although some might only see the holiday as a way to give and receive gifts, DeWitt said she believes there is more to it. “I see the holidays as a time to reflect on what we’re thankful for and how we can help others in need. My favorite thing about the holidays is the spirit surrounding it. Everyone is so kind and helpful this time of year. It really makes you feel good, and that is why I love Christmas.”