www.whyville.net Nov 14, 2004 Weekly Issue



Kay67709
Guest Writer

Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa

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Not everybody celebrates the same holidays. But on Whyville you can celebrate all you want! Halloween just ended and November has just begun, a month where in the U.S. we celebrate Veterans Day (11/11), Thanksgiving (11/25) and Advent (11/28). Then we skip off to December, which most people I know can't wait to get to.

I'm new to Whyville, but I know a lot of people on Whyville are thinking and talking about December holidays. Hanukkah, which means "dedication" and is also referred to as The Festival of Lights, is a Jewish festival. Hanukkah starts at sundown on the 7th of December and lasts eight days, through the 2nd of Tevet. Among other things, the celebration commemorates an event in Biblical times when an oil lamp that only had enough oil in it for one night burned for eight days.

On each one of the eight days, one candle is added to a special candleholder called a menorah. The middle candle, called the shamash, is used to light each of the other candles and it is lit every night. Therefore, on the first night of Hanukkah, two candles are lit (the shamash and the candle for the first night) and on the last night, there are nine lit candles.

It is traditional to eat foods fried in oil during Hanukkah. Some common foods are potato latkes and "sufganiot" (jelly doughnuts). Another tradition is to spin a dreidel (a four-sided top) and play the dreidel game. On each side of the dreidel is a different Hebrew letter. The dreidel is used for a gambling game in which each letter represents a different amount of money (basically). Some people just spin it for fun.

Editor's Note: Want to play the dreidel game in Whyville? You'll get to this holiday season!

The next holiday in line is Christmas. You can celebrate Christmas on Whyville just by making someone smile. Say happy holidays and ask them what they would like on Whyville for a present. You can get it for them and put a smile on their face. You'll know you made someone smile. (You can also get people gifts for Hanukkah, but I don't know exactly how that works.)

Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus for members of the Christian religion. People sing Christmas carols, have a wonderful feast, and spend time with family.

Kwanzaa is a 7-day festival celebrating the African-American people, their culture and their history. It is a time of celebration, community gathering and reflection. A time of endings and beginnings. Kwanzaa begins on December 26 and continues until New Year's Day, January 1.

Each evening a family member, usually the youngest child, lights candles in a special candleholder and the family discusses one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa. On New Year's Eve, which is the 6th day, family and friends get together to enjoy a large feast and to celebrate their history, culture and the New year.

Dr. Karenga (the creator of Kwanzaa) wanted to create a holiday that would bring African-Americans together in celebration of their culture. Kwanzaa begins the day after Christmas and people love to celebrate with family and friends.


Editor's Note: Readers, what do you know about the many upcoming winter holidays? What do you want to know? Share your questions and answers with your fellow citizens in the BBS below!

 

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