Christmas is happy and full of colorful times! Families come together to share food, music and love. On Christmas, people remember the birth of Baby Jesus and enjoy nativity scenes, songs and special meals.
I learned that Christmas is very important to people in Ecuador. In Ecuador, Christmas celebrations often begin around Thanksgiving. One special tradition is called Novena de Navidad. It is a nine-day time of prayer before Christmas Eve, from December 16th to December 24th. Families and communities come together each night to pray, sing Christmas songs called villancicos and share tasty treats. The novena (the prayer) helps people remember the nine dats leading up to Baby Jesus's birth.
This tradition is about faith, hope and being together. Many families take turns hosting the novena in their homes. I also see this tradition at my school. Every day at 12:00 p.m., we have a novena. Each department gets a day to lead it. We sing, pray, invite guests to speak and decorate our classrooms with nativity scenes showing the birth of Jesus. It is a joyful and meaningful time for everyone.
