Greeting 2019 with a toot, not a bang!

It has been tradition to bid the past year goodbye and greet the incoming year with a celebration. In almost any culture, we see the celebration with sumptuous food, noisemakers, and revelry. 2019 was not different. The same character described the celebration but the biggest difference for me was greeting 2019 with a toot, not a bang!

As a child, I remember celebrating Christmas eve and New Year’s eve with family members and friends all gathered together as one big group. It always had a fiesta feeling! Food preparation was always mandatory.

Chef of the house
Chef of the house

There used to be one chef-in-charge. Food preparation has now become a potluck of food specialties from different chefs.

New year 2019
Gathering ’round the table

Noisemakers in the past came in different forms. I started with bamboo shaker and rattlers. The bamboo cannon came later as the elders deemed it was too dangerous. The noise from the bamboo cannon was created by igniting a small amount of gasoline in the bamboo chamber. Least to say, I saw quite a few singed eyebrows and eyelashes!

Firecrackers and mini bombs became popular where I grew up after seeing Chinatown celebrate their new year. Of course, what happened next was everybody tried to outdo each others’ celebration with more and louder firecrackers! I was already working at a local hospital and saw quite a number of mangled fingers.

One New Year’s day celebration, I heard the crescendo and decrescendo of firecracker explosion that started at 11:45 pm and faded at 12:30 am!

New year 2019
Few minutes past 2019

The revelry of this 2019 New Year’s Day celebration has taken different form and meaning. The liveliness and noise of the occasion has intensified with the children growing up and their participation became more active. The noisemakers are the poppers, horns, and toots. The “spirits” maintain their presence but has become moderate buddies for some of us.

New year 2019
Celebrating new year 2019

I did write about my plan for the coming year at the start of 2018. Am I going to write for my plan for 2019? I guess not.  I will let 2019 come as it is.  I will remember what I did for 2018 and hope that I can do better for 2019.  I am thankful for all the blessing of 2018 and hope for the best for 2019.