Happy New Year

 Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4.   

 We offer you 4 questions weekly to get you blogging, visiting and  learning about yourself and other bloggers.   The more people join in, the merrier and the better it gets.

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Yesterday was the day after Christmas and the final day of Hanukkah.    There are only a few days left in 2022... Let's talk about it.

1.  Many stay home  and even go to bed early on New Year's Eve.   What are your plans and do you have reasons for what you do?

When I was growing up my parents home was the New Years Eve hub for their friends.  Most went out for the evening but they stopped by our home for hors d oeuvres and drinks.  My mother had tiny sandwiches, chips, dips, petit four, tiny hot dogs, special meat snacks, cheeses.  So many people dropped by to visit.  She had bayberry candles burning on the little coffee table for good luck.  Guy Lombardo was on the TV and my parents and grandmother were dressed up for the occasion.

Today I host the evening when possible and everyone is invited to stop by for snacks, etc. just like in my parents home.   

I only went out for new years eve once when I was first married.  I had a beautiful black satin dress with a diamond belt. My husband wore his best black suit and off we went.  It was very nice but we much preferred to host at home.  Today my family and friends and I nibble the evening away and talk, play games, watch movies, etc.  Its a highlight of our year.    As always the more the merrier for us and guests love our parties quite a bit.

2. Guy Lombardo was a traditional fixture on TV and then Dick Clark and his Rockin' New Years

Eve took over.    People ate certain foods, bayberry candles were burned for luck.  It seems that lately tradition  and not just for New Year, is being forgotten and lost on so many fronts.    What traditions in life  are important to you and remain steadfast in your life?

All of the holiday traditions are very important to me and I hope I have passed this along to my children.    Tradition is one of the most important parts of life and provides continuity and sets up a bond for friends and family alike.   Traditions are what keep us going and provide our fondest, largest memories.     Tradition is not something you can afford to let go of.  If you do, the family will die out. The nation will die out.   Never let go of tradition. Never.

3.  The New Year is often a time to reflect on what has transpired and many make resolutions in an effort to improve their life.      Do you count the cost of time and tradition in your life?  How do you handle good times and bad times and do you forge ahead or get mired down?

I used to get very teary eyed and sentimental as a child and especially when we sang Auld Lang Syne.   As with tradition, counting the cost, meditating on what you've done and will do are important glues that bind friendship and family and nations together.   If you forget the past you will have no real future.  Life is built on the past. The present and future all rely on it and one has to take it apart, analyze it and reform or repeat it.       Like confession, it is good for the soul.

4.  In ancient Israel, the new liturgical year began in the Spring with Passover.. a new beginning.  The Civil year calendar began on Rosh Hashana and 2022-23 is the year 5783 on the Hebrew calendar as of September.       How important is the liturgical calendar in your life?       Do you take notice of religious holidays and times?       Are the holidays more religious or secular for you and your family?       All holidays have a religious basis for me.  By this I mean that even secular holidays can be based on religious feeling and faith.   Each and every day of life should be built and based on faith and belief and on the core value of pleasing God with the things that you do.

𝓗𝓪𝓹𝓹𝔂 𝓝𝓮𝔀 𝓨𝓮𝓪𝓻 𝓯𝓻𝓸𝓶 𝓣𝓾𝓮𝓼𝓭𝓪𝔂 4 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓻𝓸𝓶 𝓶𝓮 𝓱𝓮𝓻𝓮 𝓪𝓽 𝓒𝓸𝓽𝓽𝓪𝓰𝓮 𝓫𝔂 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓢𝓮𝓪.