2020: a New Year and a New Decade
2020: A NEW YEAR AND A NEW DECADE — Central High School is ready to flip the calendar to a new year and decade.
December 31, 2019
Loading ...At midnight, the day will change from Tuesday to Wednesday, but this is not just any normal Wednesday, it is the beginning of a new year as well as a new decade. The dawn of a new calendar year is making most everyone anxious to get their second semester of the school year started and see what 2020 has in store for them.
New Year’s was named after Janus, the god with two faces, one being forward, which represents the past year, and the other side representing the new year. This tradition has been around since 45 B.C. when it was originally called the Julian Calendar. Since 1582, it has been called the Gregorian Calendar.
However, New Year’s was not always celebrated in January. It used to be in March, following the Lunar cycle. That shortly changed in 46 B.C. according to Mic.com
With varying time-zones around the globe, different parts of the world will enter the new year at different times.
“New Years is first celebrated on the small island nations of Tonga, Samoa, and Kiribati,” quoted an article on World Atlas.com.
The aforementioned territories are the first to begin their New Year’s celebrations.
New Year’s is considered to be the fourth favorite holiday in America, with Christmas taking the number one spot. Around this time of the year, Americans consume 360 million glasses of festive drinks.
While celebrating New Year’s, there are many traditions that people follow each year. People tend to eat a variety of food, such as black-eyed peas, ham, and cabbage, because they believe that it will bring them good luck. To some individuals, clothing also brings good luck, such as the tradition of wearing red underwear, which started during the medieval times in Italy.
On the other hand, some believe that it is unlucky to eat lobster and chicken because it said that those foods can cause a reversal of fortune.
Another tradition is the countdown to midnight, like the famous ball drop in New York which was invented after a fireworks ban. People have been celebrating in this way since 1907, with the exceptions of 1942 and 1943 due to blackouts from World War II. Unlike the classic ball drop of New York, other states hold other versions of ball drops specific to their location, such as in Mobile, Alabama, where a Moon Pie drop is held to honor the staple southern snack.
“To ensure a year of good luck, firecrackers and noisemakers became a tradition in order to scare away any remaining evil spirits and to ensure a brand new start,” wrote WestWaters News.
Resolutions can come and go, and they are supposed to be a promise one makes to oneself for the next 12 months. Unfortunately, U.S News and World Report interviewed citizens, and 80% of them lose their resolutions mid-February.
Some Central students were asked what about their resolutions for 2020.
“My New Year’s resolution is to lose more weight,” revealed Senior David Villanueva.
Some students are looking forward to starting new jobs, or continuing to save up money. Soloman Williams is eager to gain $2,000 every-other-paycheck throughout the whole year.
Other students want to use 2020 as a time of self care and growth.
“I would like to spend more time on things I enjoy instead of what others enjoy,” said Senior Milly Garner.
“My resolution for next year is to always remember that I have value,” stated Tyana Varner.
Although January 1 is the dawn of a new year, it is also mathematics teacher Edward Potter’s birthday.
Students return to school on January 6, starting the new semester, and only have roughly 89 days until the last day of school. With the new year coming around and a decade ending, this will hopefully bring everyone into a new mindset for the next semester. Once students and teachers return, they would have had a mental break, with newfound motivation for the rest of the school year.
“Keep the smile, hold the laugh, leave the pain, think of joy, forget the fear, and be joyous because it’s a new year!” states the popular saying.
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