Feeling at home by the fire

One of my favorite times of the year at William & Mary is just before Christmas at the Yule Log ceremony. The Yule Log ceremony falls on the weekend separating the two weeks of finals, so it serves as a nice and festive study break. During the ceremony, everyone gathers in front of the Wren, where W&M choir groups will sing Christmas carols and different religious groups speak about their traditions. President Reveley also dresses up as Santa Clause and reads passages from How the Grinch Stole Christmas! My favorite part of the event is throwing the sprigs of holly into the fire in the Great Hall in the Wren. Everyone is given a small sprig of holly so that they can throw it into the fire for good luck on their exams, and good luck in the new year. You then get to drink hot cider and eat warm cookies to help you warm up after standing outside for a couple of hours. This W&M tradition is definitely something to look forward to, as it is a time where the whole campus gets together to celebrate the end of fall semester and the upcoming holidays.

Christmas time in general is one of my favorite times of the year, and this Yule Log ceremony made me so much more excited for the holidays. Usually December is somewhat stressful since we have exams before break, so the Yule Log ceremony helps to reduce some stress so that the student body can get into the festive spirit. I was so enamored with the entire event that I really didn’t pay attention to how cold it was or worry about any looming exams. It was so nice to see the entire campus together in one area, as everyone spent a couple hours together forgetting about the stress and worry that had come from the first week of finals.

During that moment, gathered in front of the Wren with friends, I finally realized that I had made the right decision to transfer. While you always feel the community atmosphere during other parts of the semester, these special events are truly something else, and this moment during my first year was when I finally felt like I was home.

-Rachel Kamvar ’17