The Seventh Day Of Christmas 2020 And The Eve Of A New Year

The Seventh Day of Christmas is New Year's Eve. In much of Christian Europe this day is also known as Silvester or the Feast of Sylvester. One of the more interesting iterations of celebrating the arrival of the new year occurs in Scotland. It's known as Hogmanay. It's a nice blend of old and new elements including feasts, fireworks, bonfires, torchlight processions, and  the driving out trolls.

The many features of Hogmanay will be repeated throughout this day as the new year sweeps across the face of the planet. Virtually all the these activities, though reduced in scale by the current pandemic, will involve the gathering of family and friends. Whether they celebrate among millions or simply with immediate family there will come a time to end the celebration and look forward to the sun rising on the first new day of the new year. In the western world, perhaps any place touched by British traditions, that gathering will end with the singing of Robert Burns's poem, Auld Lang Syne, set to an ancient Scottish folk melody. At least three centuries before Burns's lyric became popular, there was another song shared among departing English, Irish, and Scots friends on the eve of the new year. We offer The Parting Glass to you today as we ring out 2020 and ring in 2021 as a year of hope overflowing with blessing and goodwill for all in addition to the control of Covid-19.

After the good-byes and watching from windows and doorways as our guests depart, we return to a favorite chair near the fireplace. With nog in hand and thoughts not only of the the past few hours but also of days gone by, the faces in the fire whisper to us in a spectrum of colors, a chorus of expressions, and life is good.  

Happy New Year 2021!

Sources

Photos and Illustrations:
OTR archives  

Text:
wikipedia.org
thelocal.de