Essays About Celebration: Top 6 Examples Plus Prompts

Life provides us with many reasons to celebrate. Read this article for helpful essay examples and writing prompts you can use to write essays about celebration. 

From honoring people on their birthdays, commemorating historical events, and holding family gatherings for the holidays, there seems to be a near-endless number of occasions to celebrate.  Celebrations help us feel good about ourselves and the milestones we have achieved. We commemorate things essential to us, whether joyful events like a birthday or Christmas or a sad event like a loved one’s death anniversary. They are also essential to our culture, as they help us stay connected to our roots and heritage and preserve longstanding traditions. Without a doubt, celebration plays an important role in everyone’s life. 

If you’re having trouble writing essays about celebration, read the essay examples featured below.

Top 6 Essay Examples

1. Festivals by Everett Smith

“Festivals are part of one’s custom, culture and tradition. They are there for us to celebrate. It helps us forget our routine. It gives us some momentary, mental and physical relaxation and thus frees us from die shackles of monotonous work. It is a celebration, entertainment or series of performances of a certain kind, often held periodically.”

Smith writes about why celebrating festivals is so enjoyable, particularly in his native Kuwait. The month is filled with festivities, special events, and prayer. Smith also describes New Year’s Eve in Kuwait: it is celebrated with fireworks, friends, and family as in other countries. Festivals connect us to our traditions and allow us to relax, have fun, and celebrate. 

Check out these essays about being grateful.

2. I Hate Christmas. Here’s Why I’m Celebrating It for the Next 2 Months. by Elisabeth Ovesen

“This year, Christmas is self-care and a means of survival. This year, I will not allow my mother’s slight to dictate my joy or the absence thereof. This year, she doesn’t win. I will break the chains created by her malfeasance, and I will celebrate this Christmas. I will celebrate the New Year even though, for many of us, it will most likely be as tragic as the one before.”

Ovesen recounts a Christmas experience in which her mother gave gifts to all the children but her, after which she never celebrated Christmas again. For decades, she did not celebrate Christmas; however, this year, she says, she will make up for all the missed celebrations. She does not want her mother’s mistreatment to control her happiness, so she chooses to celebrate life, family, and missed time. 

3. A Birthday Reflection by Chava Gal-Or

“One family even brought me a gift basket that literally brought tears to my eyes.  Another friend made me a gluten free cake which has now ruined my sons ever making me cake again; hers was too good!!!!  One gift that I always treasure is the phone call I receive each year from my brother; this year was no exception.  Finally, I was also able to hang with one friend in the morning and another friend in the evening.  Life is and was truly good!”

In her short essay, Gal-Or reflects on her birthday that year and what she has realized about life. She lists a few lessons she has learned, including the importance of having a voice, quality time, family, and friends. Her birthday celebration is simple; she only mentions meeting up with two friends, which makes her extremely happy. Gal-Or’s essay is an excellent example of how different people like to celebrate in different ways; some are content with the simplest celebrations.

4.  Why a Pandemic Christmas Is the Best Damn Holiday on the Planet by Reuben Salsa

“I’m thrilled that this year I have no obligation to visit. That finally, I have a legitimate excuse not to plaster on a fake smile, hold my tongue, and pretend that we all get along. This Christmas promises to be one of the merriest ever, knowing it’ll just be me, my wife, and the kids. Simpler times. No extravagance. No kowtowing. No begging and pleading in-laws to stay even though you want them to leave. No emotional regret for ruining yet another Christmas.”

Salsa remembers the Christmas celebrations before the COVID-19 pandemic and all the stress, squabbling, and discomfort that came with them. He recalls the chaos at previous Christmases with his in-laws and is relieved that the times keep them apart. Since the pandemic keeps the extended family from celebrating, he is relieved that their celebration will be relaxed, with just him, his wife, and the kids. 

5. ​​The Importance of Family Traditions by Lisa Cossey

“No matter what your family tradition is or what your family chooses to create, just having something for all family members to look forward to each year is important. Traditions help create warm, positive memories that can be recalled fondly and draw family members back to one another year after year.”

Cossey’s essay simply describes how her family celebrates Thanksgiving and Christmas. However, they have several traditions, including camping trips, baking pies, and video calling other family members. These traditions strengthen familial bonds and create memories to cherish. Cossey also gives examples of other family traditions,  including movie nights, reading books, talent shows, and cooking. 

6. ​​What is celebration? by Julian Baggini

“Perhaps on reflection, the best thing to do would be to curl up with a good book. The case is, as ever, inconclusive. But in a world where dogmatism is increasingly the greatest threat, perhaps the tentative nature of philosophical discourse is precisely what we should be celebrating, quietly.”

This essay about celebrating World Philosophy Day opens with a philosophical question. How exactly should such an eccentric occasion be celebrated? Baggini proposes having a philosophical discussion in a cafe, as many great philosophers once did, and a Greek-style party with philosophical exchanges. However, in typical philosophy fashion, the answer is inconclusive. Baggini suggests instead celebrating the “tentative nature of philosophical discourse.”

5 Writing Prompts For Essays About Celebration

1. Why Do We Celebrate?

We all know the types of occasions that people celebrate, but why do people continue to celebrate? In your essay, look into the different reasons people celebrate, whether superstitious, cultural, sentimental, or entirely different. Don’t just give examples of occasions to celebrate; explain why people celebrate them. 

2. Different Ways People Celebrate

Think of an occasion such as a birthday, holiday, or religious festival and write about how people typically celebrate it- What do they eat? Who do they celebrate with? What are other traditions connected to it? You may include information from the internet, but your essay can be based entirely on your opinions and experiences. 

3. Are Celebrations A Waste of Money?

Some say that celebrating is a waste of money, particularly for occasions like Christmas, as it takes away the holiday’s true meaning. People spend so much on a celebration just to have a “superficial” understanding of the occasion. For an engaging argumentative essay, write about whether you think these sorts of celebrations are wasteful. Be sure to include perspectives from both sides of the argument, and have a strong rebuttal to the opposing viewpoint

4. The Cultural Importance of Preserving Celebrations

Celebrations reflect one’s culture and heritage, familial, regional, religious, or national. Are festivities and celebrations essential to keeping a culture alive, or are there other ways to do this? You do not need to have a solid “yes” or “no” argument in your essay; it can be more nuanced as long as it is explained well.

5. My Most Memorable Celebration

An easy way to write an engaging essay is by reflecting on a celebration you found particularly memorable. Write about the celebration in detail- Who was there? When was it? How did you celebrate? How has it impacted you today? From a childhood Christmas to a loved one’s funeral, this essay has many possibilities. 

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