My least favorite holiday approaches, New Years. I can see marking the end of a calendar year and the beginning of the next. I just could never understand the staying up all night kissing at midnight tradition. As I got older I looked at other cultures traditions for new years and found ours sort of lacking. They had special food, special clothes, parades, give gifts etc. we just get drunk and smooch. So this year I decided to look into our New Year traditions and I am liking this Holiday much better for it.
It probably won’t surprise you most of the traditions in America came from Great Brittan. Auld Lang syne a Scottish song, whose words totally escaped me so I Googled them and here they are. A right catchy tune… something Beowulf would have sung.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne?
For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!
And there's a hand my trusty fiere,
And gie's a hand o thine,
And we'll tak a right guid-willie waught,
For auld lang syne
For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!
Another really old tradition is the New Year’s resolution. I guess that came from Babylon. The most common resolution for them was to return all borrowed farm equipment. Yep, got to get that ox back to old Zeb, it’s eating me out of house and home!
What I can gather from this song and other information I could find, new years is a starting over time. It’s hoping for better luck, for yourself and your loved ones in the coming year. Whatever you eat, whatever actions you take, such as making loud noise at midnight to chase bad luck from your door, and the people you are with on the first day of the New Year will determine your luck, and theirs, for the rest of the year. So People started gathering with friends and family and staying up to mid night, to be together in the very first minutes of the New Year.
Do not to eat chicken, as a chicken scratches in the dirt and you don’t want to have to be scratching for your food all year. Chickens also scratch backward so that is bad too. Don’t eat beef as cows stand still. Pork is ok as a pig roots forward. Lintels are considered lucky as they are shaped like coins. Donuts too are lucky.
So this year I’ll open the door at midnight and bang two pots together, like my mom always did, now I know why. I will eat donuts for breakfast New Years morning, watch the Rose parade and make Lentil and soup for lunch. Somewhere in there I will have a couple of beers and maybe some Bailey’s Irish cream in my coffee.
I lift my martini glass of lintels to you, and leave you with this Irish Blessing for the coming New Year.
Walls for the wind, and roof for the rain, and drinks by the fire.
Laughter to cheer you, and those you love near you, and all that your heart may desire.
I have included a site below that has some more interesting new year’s traditions.
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