In my rose garden sits a plaque which says,"In loving memory of 2006". LIttle did I know that I had started a tradition. 2006 had been a very perilous year and all I wanted to do at the end of it was to bury it. So I invited all of my nearest and dearest friends and set out to do just that....bury the year.
First we need a gathering of friends and then we need to feed them but with what ? By the time New Year's Eve rolls around everyone is pretty tired of holiday food so why not have a "Grandma's Feast Potluck". Everyone brings two dishes from their supply of family recipes. It is a great way to start an evening and the food is fantastic. Our friends and family come from all over the world and so does the food.
Next......"The Fire Ritual". Some years the fire ritual is in the fireplace and some years it's outside with a big bonfire. It all depends on the weather. Everyone brings mementos of their bad memories to place in the fire and say goodbye. Throughout the year people save their items in envelopes and lovingly bring them to this event. It is vey cleansing and helps move issues forward ....even difficult ones. We have all brought along noise makers to drum, sing, whirl, and whiz along as people bid their memories a fond farewell. After all are burning ,everyone is given a piece of white paper and pen to write their wishes for the new year. This too is burned in the fire to send "prayers" up to heaven. At the end of the ritual we sing Auld Lang Syne. Then come the cherished words........
"Now let us eat Shovel Cake".
Shovel cake was invented by my friend Patti Young. For the first bury the year she brought this huge cake with a garden trowl in it to symbolise digging the earth and burying the year. She actually writes each year on the handle. For many of our friends 2008 has been not only difficult but tragic. Patti felt the year warranted not only the shovel but a backhoe too.
The rest of the evening is spent playing music, talking, and around 11:30 we start watching the famous ABC "Rockin New Years' Eve" to watch the ball drop.
Whatever your tradition is I hope you have a very wonderful New Year !
