The Holidays Come to UVA

Have y'all caught the holiday bug yet? Here in Charlottesville, we're in our last week of classes and the stress of finals week has definitely set in. But if Shelby's last post on holiday travels didn't clue you in to what's really on UVA student's minds, this video of one of my favorite UVA traditions will!

The Lighting of the Lawn celebrated its tenth anniversary last night, in an evening complete with music, steaming cups of hot cocoa, a humorous poem recapping the events of the past year, and approximately 5,000 feet of holiday lights. For me, events like this cement the fact that I belong at UVA. Somewhere between touring my friends' lawn rooms, singing along with the a cappella groups, and finishing the night with the Good Old Song (really, nothing "cheers my heart or warms my blood"- and trust me, I needed warming in last night's chilly weather- like the Good Old Song), I was struck by how incredibly blessed I am to be a part of such a wonderful community that celebrates the moments between libraries and loves to take the night off to honor and enjoy the traditions that make UVA a magical place.

Check out this video and join in the tradition! Sorry about the shaking, it's surprising difficult to sway to the Good Old Song and film at the same time. I know it's dark, but I hope you can get a good idea of how many people attend this event- the lawn was packed!