Happy New Year from Canada

*******HAPPY NEW YEAR*******

That greeting will be said and heard for at least the first couple of weeks as a new year gets under way.The celebration of the New Year is the oldest of all holidays. It was first observed in ancient Babylon about 4000 years ago. In the years around 2000 BC, the Babylonian New Year began with the first New Moon (actually the first visible crescent) after the Vernal Equinox (first day of spring).

The tradition of using a baby to signify the New Year was begun in Greece around 600 BC. It was their tradition at that time to celebrate their god of wine, Dionysus, by parading a baby in a basket, representing the annual rebirth of that god as the spirit of fertility. Early Egyptians also used a baby as a symbol of rebirth.

Although the early Christians denounced the practice as pagan, the popularity of the baby as a symbol of rebirth forced the Church to reevaluate its position. The Church finally allowed its members to celebrate the new year with a baby, which was to symbolize the birth of the baby Jesus.

AULD LANG SYNE
The song, "Auld Lang Syne," is sung at the stroke of midnight in almost every English-speaking country in the world to bring in the New Year. At least partially written by Robert Burns in the 1700's, it was first published in 1796 after Burns' death. Early variations of the song were sung prior to 1700 and inspired Burns to produce the modern rendition. An old Scotch tune, "Auld Lang Syne" literally means "old long ago," or simply, "the good old days."

http://wilstar.com/holidays/newyear.htm

************

We woke this first morning of 2009 to a fresh layer of snow on top of the slush and ice. This time it was just and inch deep and began melting quickly. We're going to have a quite day doing absolutely nothing. Mid afternoon I need some fresh air so we have a walk around the complex. the roadways are running with melting snow and ice. Back home the log fire is crackling nicely and we settle back to our knitting and the telly.