HAPPY nEW yEAR!

     As the clock ticks toward midnight on December 31st,  many wait around the globe to celebrate the very second  that the year's digits change to a new year, decade, or century!  Great festivities mark the hours leading up to the minute, and the countdown from final seconds before the stroke of midnight,  anticipation builds for the explosion of noise, confetti, champagne, and kissing!  Fireworks are unleashed and bands begin to play!  People break out in song to the familiar "Auld Lang Syne"!  A scene repeated around the world and shared with friends, family, and nearby strangers via media or in person, whether in the moment or the next day!  Where we are in that very moment, minute, and second matters less than who we share that time with, in the present or with memories, it remains a traditional passage of time.

     THE MIDNIGHT KISS.  With or without mistletoe, the tradition of kissing someone at midnight has roots in history that lend themselves to the superstitious and lovers alike.  In Ancient Rome, it has been said that New Year's Eve was called the Festival of Saturanalia, and as the Roman's were known for throwing big parties, they would generally kiss one another as much as possible!  English and German Folklore led us to the idea that the first person you encountered in a new year would set the tone for the rest of the year, and to strengthen the relationship you currently had, would call for a kiss at the stroke of midnight!  If being single was the case, a kiss from anyone would prevent a whole year of being alone and miserable!  The pressure of kissing at midnight is off during Hogmanay, the new year celebration in Scotland, as it is traditional to give a kiss to everyone in the room!  During the Renaissance when masquerade balls were frequently attended, the tradition gets deeper!  According to legend, face masks symbolized evil spirits, and at midnight, the masks were removed for giving and receiving kisses, which purified the person to begin the new year!  Today, the kissing tradition continues, but with much less pressure!  The natural lip lock with a significant other is most commonly the first kiss of the new year for many, but the good luck/bad luck notions are meaningless predictors of relationship ahead.  Sharing that first kiss of the year might just be a peck on the cheek from the person next to you which represents unity in the moment, or a smooch between potential lovers poised next to each other for an opportunistic moment, a lip lock with a lover, or a kiss that keeps on giving between romantic lovebirds!  By the way, with Covid affecting our "safe space", you can send a kiss across the room... it counts!

     THE NEW YEAR RESOLUTION.  The ancient Babylonians would pledge to pay their debts,  plant their crops and believed that if they kept their word, the Gods would provide a good year ahead.  The Romans would make sacrifices and promise good behaviors to please the Gods.  In the Middle Ages, knights would renew their vows of chivalry.  New Year resolutions were common in the 17th century, with promises to practice behaviors that would not be offensive to others, or to make good for others.  In the 1800's, resolutions were made to reject their sinful ways with the intent to wipe away their former faults.  In today's modern world, people commonly make resolutions to themselves, rather than to Gods.  Self improvement in the area of health, welfare, and goals following the celebration of Christmas where greed and gluttony abound.  In an effort to begin with a fresh slate, today's resolutions carry a burden of great change, which can end with disappointment as unrealistic expectations are set forth.  With that in mind, set small goals, and set them often.  There are 12 months in a year to raise the bar.  Keep it real!

     NEW YEARS EVE NOISE!  With the drop of the ball, the click of the clock, and the end of a countdown, fireworks are released, sparklers are lit, horns are blown, noisemakers crackle, music begins, and people shout!  What started this beautiful chaos?  Of course, it would scare away the evil spirits that lurked around!  Today, we don't worry so much about those pesky bad spirits as we do about shouting for joy and basking in the beauty of color, laughter, and love!

     AULD LANG SYNE   Following the explosion of our "Happy New Year" cheer, the traditional song, "Auld Lang Syne" welcomes in the New Year, being played, sang, and enjoyed often with champagne toast in hand.  The song was written by a Scottish man, Robert Burns in 1788.  The rough translation of the phrase "auld lang syne" is "for old times' sake".  The song is about looking back at events over the past year and the friendships that a person holds.  There are several verses to the song,  Auld Lang Syne, but the words to the chorus and first verse that we are so familiar with on New Year's Eve go like this:

       Should auld acquaintance be forgot

       And never brought to mind?

      Should auld acquaintance be forgot

      And days of auld lang syne?

      For auld lang syne, my dear

      For auld lang syne

      We'll take a cup o' kindness yet

      For days of auld lang syne

HAPPYIEST OF THE NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU!  A new beginning...bring it on!

#happynewyear #auldlangsyne  #partyonthefly

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