Our country is amazing for the fact that our population is made up of people who come from all over the world and each of them carries his or her own personal ancestry and background.

It makes us all different and strikingly similar, an oxymoron maybe but a beautiful one at that. That is what won us the nickname “the melting pot,” after all.

The holidays serve as a good reminder of this as we all find ourselves not just celebrating in different ways, but sometimes following a set of completely opposing beliefs.

It can be easy to forget that these differences are what make each and every one of us beautiful. I used to be almost detrimentally shy so standing out was never my intention and whenever it happened I was usually miserable. But the older I get, the more I realize that I should not only love my distinguishing qualities, but that I should embrace them.

Of course, having to repeat your name four times, spell it, and then assure the person you are talking to that, one, it is not short for anything and, two, that it is a real name can get old pretty quick. Then again, having a name that does not bounce off everyone’s tongues is sort of refreshing.

I really like the fact that all of my friends have different religions and cultures. It gives me a chance to learn about their traditions, which they are always willing to share and the opportunity for me to include them in mine.

Keeping with that theme, one of those traditions for me is that this week, I and many other Orthodox Christians and churches in the region, will be celebrating Christmas. Because our church follows the old calendar Christmas falls two weeks later than when most others observe the holiday.

My family has always celebrated on both Dec. 25 and Jan. 7, which I have always thought was a blessing since it gave us the opportunity to recognize and honor the miracle of the holiday twice a year.

Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve is by far one of my favorite nights of the year. From the burning of the Yule Log to the procession around the church with candles that light our way back to the service that takes place inside, all of it takes my breath away each time.

This year, it will hold even more significance to me because my dad is home from the hospital. Since we were not able to celebrate on Dec. 25 outside the confines of the hospital walls, I am looking forward to all of the festivities and traditions this week has to hold even more than usual. So it seems I got my Christmas wish after all and just in time for the holidays.

So even if you may not share my faith, I am wishing you all prosperity and good health in the year to come, and I hope that the differences of those around us bring us closer together, not further apart.

The opinions are solely those of the writer.