Of Hope, Faith and Good Tidings

First, Wish you a New Year better and brighter than the last.

What does the New Year really mean to you? This is the question that's kept me thinking for the past few years. Memories.. thoughts and hope.

When in school, the first of January meant a day off, a new diary, greeting cards to be bought and exchanged and the visit to the temple. Although, the last one depended largely on the crowds and location.

My dad would order a batch of cards to send to all his colleagues and friends and he would let me select those I wanted for my friends and teachers. I miss that. I much prefer the greeting card to the electronic card - an impersonal, cheaper alternative.

I never attended a New Year eve's party till I came to the States. Oh Wait. There was one time.. it was a dinner party at a relative's house with lots of people whom I did not know. So, it doesn't count. I welcomed every year with family, at home, watching TV (does anyone remember 'flop show' on DD) and eagerly waiting for the phone to ring once the clock strikes twelve. That was the best part - especially when the lines let you talk. We would keep trying for atleast a couple more hours and then give up, only to resume the next day.

I love answering the phone with 'Happy New Year!' on Jan 1st. I know its not fair on the person who called, for he/she definitely wants to wish you first. It's just fun to be the first one.

The one thing to buy within the first week of the New Year was a diary, for many years. I wrote it regularly and religiously till I came to college. And then Life got too complicated to fill in one page per one day. Even then I tried to pour my heart and thought into a notebook, but it was never the same. I bid goodbye to Dear Diary one fine year..

What the New Year means to me now as a grown up is amusing. Parties.. drinks.. food. thoughts of the cleanup after the party or the next day. And maybe some grown up games. Waiting for the clock to strike twelve doesnt change of course, nor does the wish to see something nice on TV (and not frantic people vying for TV time at Times square.. oh and enough with the kissing for the camera)

Hope doesn't change. Hope that there is still hope, hope that the new year would solve some of the problems of the last... bring to life some of your good dreams and of course... some peace and contentment to your daily dreams.

So I ask again.. what does the New Year mean to you if not hope, faith and good tidings? :)

See you on the other side of the weekend..