A Chanukah Message From Charlotte Morrison

For the first nine years of my life, I attended The Davis Academy. Then in ninth grade, I switched to a Christian school. The switch was interesting, especially during the holiday season. Even though my family celebrates a non-religious Christmas, it was strange to see my entire school decorated with trees and wreaths. But this difference at my school made me become an educator on Judaism there.

As one of only five Jewish kids in the high school, I see Hanukkah as a time where I get to share the traditions from my childhood with my peers. Every December at my school, we have an “Ugly Christmas Sweater Day” and for the past three years, I have worn my “Ugly Hanukkah Sweater,” instead, which everyone loves to see.

Last year, I learned that my friends had never really learned much about Hanukkah, and even worse, had never eaten traditional Jewish food. This, to me, was shocking, and I knew that I had to be the one to teach my friends about some of the best parts about being Jewish. So, I decided to invite all my friends over to my house to have a little Hannukah party. I taught them how to play dreidel, we all lit the menorah together, and, of course, shared a meal of brisket, latkes and sufganiyot. We all had so much fun together, and I look forward to hosting another one again this year.

Charlotte Morrison is a senior at Mount Vernon Presbyterian School and an intern at the AJT.