As the temperature cooled down and the late nights of exam prep neared, Hill began its preparations for the upcoming holiday season. In wake of last year’s considerable struggle to gather as a whole, the Hill community shares a universal desire to experience the joys of the Christmas and holiday season with one another. With that in mind, the return of these traditions to Hill’s school year cannot be overlooked or understated. 

Returning students looked forward to the annual Thanksgiving feast, which took place during seated lunch in the week leading up to Thanksgiving break. This feast included traditional turkey cuisine and allowed the community to reflect upon their blessings and to acknowledge the roots of the holiday before departing on their well-deserved hiatus. 

Before the transition to H-Term, students and their dorm heads decorated dorm spaces, such as common rooms, hallways, and personal dorm rooms for their respective observances. Similarly, the 6th form looked forward to the annual 6th form tree decorating, during which the Hill Christmas Tree was adorned by the Class of 2022 to commemorate their final year at school.

The beginning of H-Term also included the start of the annual Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, for which the school held many events for Jewish and non-Jewish students. Activities such as playing dreidel and cooking traditional Jewish cuisine were some of the events that occured. Allowing the attendance of both Jewish and non-Jewish community members allowed such events to also bring to light Jewish traditions, beliefs, and history and consequently educate Hill students on various religious traditions. The Rev. Anne Confer Martens ‘02 remarked on the goals of the Spiritual Life Committee, explaining, “When we have plans that are open, we want there to be an educational component as well. Giving students the opportunity to share a little bit about their understanding, what it means to them, and what practices look like in their own families is great in helping other students learn more about their religion.”

With the implementation of H-Term, classic Hill traditions are also able to be approached in new ways, such as Candlelight – an annual Chapel service in which current and former community members gather to celebrate the Christmas season during Advent through song, prayer, and the telling of the story of Jesus’s birth. This event is set to be held on Dec. 15 and will be performed by choir and chamber choir members, as well as members of the Hilltones and Hilltrebles. 

However, because of H-term, in order to still host this beloved Hill tradition, Oaklawn-Tuttle Director of Vocal Music Yoon Soo Lim will be leading a modified Candlelight Ceremony through offering an H-term course.  “This year what’s going to be offered is called Hill Christmas Festival — as an H-Term class — in which we meet with students and they will have a say in how this service will go.” She also noted traditions such as 6th form caroling, in which senior students follow a route around campus in vocal festivity.

Regarding the annual schoolwide Secret Santa event, in which students can celebrate one another in the form of giving rather than receiving, Senior Master Teacher of the Arts Ellen Nelson remarked, “It’s one of those communal events, though sometimes awkward and weird, I think it sets the tone for the holiday. You can tell some people put a lot of thought into it, so it’s really cool to see.”