By Lubna Abdel-Aziz Nothing brings us together as one human race like the New Year. Perhaps not as laden with song and ceremony and all things spiritual as Christmas, but the partying and rejoicing is legendary crossing all races and religions. Universally celebrated with vim and gusto, a collective sense of hope and renewal infiltrates heaven and earth. We cling to each other for warmth and support as we all move forward into the darkness of the unknown "brave new world" of 2005. New Year's is the oldest of man's holidays. It is measured by the period which the earth completes a single revolution around the sun. Once celebrated as humankind's religious feast (halidai meaning holy day), its story begins long before any calendar year existed, and was celebrated at springtime with the vernal equinox, marking the start of the agricultural season. Indulging in food and drink, feasting and merrymaking is nothing more than an extension of our pagan past, but our present day noisy parades pale in comparison to the rowdy carousing of our ancestors. We have at least upheld their sacred tradition, keeping New Year's Eve the noisiest of nights, by scaring away the evil spirits from destroying our new harvest. Celebrating the birth of a new year in spring makes good sense, but what are we so eagerly celebrating in the bitter cold of winter. Blame it on the Romans. Their ancient calendar observed 25 March as the first day of the year, but Roman emperors tampered with the calendar for personal reasons. By the year 153 BC they declared 1 January as the start of a new year. In the fourth century, Christianity condemned all pagan celebrations and established its own festivals to compete with them. To rival the New Year's holidays they observed Christ's circumcision on 1 January, "still observed by some Catholics, Lutherans, Episcopalians and many Eastern Orthodox sects". Though the oldest of feasts, New Year's as we know it, is only 400 years old having gained and enjoyed widespread acceptance. The four corners of the globe's inhabitants celebrate the coming of the New Year. They blow their horns, beat their drums, crash their cymbals, ring their bells, and illuminate the skies with explosive fireworks as they "ring out the old and ring in the new", happy to see the old year die out, and eager to welcome new hope and new beginnings. Why should we not be happy to see the demise of 2004, a daily nagging companion for 12 months, bringing little comfort, bearing few good tidings and fewer kind deeds. But would it go quietly, "gentle into that good night". By no means! 2004 departed with a bang and a roar, louder than the trembling of the ages. A mighty earthquake that triggered 11 gigantic tidal waves or "tsunamis" was followed by massive floods that devoured everything in their path with no warning, rhyme or reason. An unprecedented deluge of biblical proportions, it has spread, ruin, death and disaster in 12 countries from South Asia to East Africa, killing hundreds of thousands, leaving millions homeless and destitute, before it disappeared into the dark pages of history. It was a deadly year complete with floods, fires, hurricanes, earthquakes, and tidal waves that ravaged 44 countries before its demise. The victims as usual, were mainly the poor, the helpless, the vulnerable, while the rich remain insulated and protected. With our population growth, the number of deaths from such catastrophes continues to rise and all our advanced technology is still powerless against the might of Mother Nature. Billions are living on the brink of disaster with minimum coping capacity. We can still hear the children weeping! Who is to comfort and protect those children and wipe the tears off their sad and sullen faces. Will 2005 compel governments to invest in the security of those who suffer most? Are we optimistic about 2005? Indeed we are, as we were for 2004, 2003, 2002, the new millennium, etc, etc. It is our mechanism of self-preservation without which we would soon self-destruct. Consider how we start our New Year with laughter and merrymaking and the infinite hope in our hearts that the best is yet to come. The best was not the property of 2004. It took the lives of many, some who have changed the course of modern history. Among its victims were Palestine's leader and freedom fighter Yasser Arafat, whose image will remain imprinted on the human conscience. An American optimist, President Ronald Reagan, played a major role in bringing down communism in Eastern Europe. Who can forget the inspiring battle waged by one quadriplegic, aka Superman, following a horseback accident; superstar Christopher Reeves remained Superman till the end. What about black and blind musician Ray Charles who would not allow such minor handicaps to hamper his efforts to entertain a largely white biased America for half a century. The incomparable Marlon Brando, left a regal legacy of artistic achievements so intense and brilliant, it will continue to illuminate the path of all acting and all actors. Hollywood's highlights for 2004, came in the form of two contrasting feats inspired by strong convictions and deep rooted principles. Ultra- conservative actor/director/ producer Mel Gibson shook the very roots of the Hollywood kingdom with The Passion of the Christ. Despite continuous rejection and refusal, Gibson would not waiver. He dug into his own chest for $25-35 million, risked his favourable standing as "prince of the kingdom" and was rewarded a box-office draw of over $600 million from a grateful and admiring public. No less influential was ultra- liberal Michael Moore's defying documentary Fahrenheit 9/11, biggest money-maker in the history of documentaries, amassing over $100 million. Both have Oscars on their mantelpieces, Gibson for Braveheart (1995), Moore for Bowling for Columbine (2002) , and longing for companions in 2005. If we were to wish for one single virtue for mankind, "kindness" would be a good choice. The milk of human kindness never flows freely but dribbles drop by drop. What more than "kindness" can help the wronged, the sorrowful, and the suffering, who must cope with the cruel, the uncharitable, the unfeeling. A smile, a kind word, a warm hug, a sign of gratitude filled with solace and compassion is a genuine offering of the best of one's self, and costs nothing. Let us ring out this "annus horribilis" and with it the cruelty, the violence, the bloodshed. Let us ring in peace, compassion, kindness and more kindness. Filled with promise, filled with dread, we await the world of 2005 as we cling to honoured traditions of hope and renewal, resolute in our desire for the betterment of mankind. "Kindness" is the message in our song of choice that rings from every end of the earth. It was adopted and adapted by the national poet of Scotland, Robert Burns, from an old native folk song. He sent the text to the British Museum with this comment: ".....the following song, an old song of the olden times, has never been in print, not even in manuscript, until I took it down from an old man's singing...." He could not have imagined then, that the whole world would be singing his song for generations and generations, every New Year, year after year. Its cry of nostalgia, its unbroken dream of human kindness and everlasting friendship bring us together in strength and resolve, as we long for Auld Lang Syne "old long since". We sing of our joys and our sorrows, we mourn for old friends passed, we seek the soothing comfort of another human's hand. And here's a hand my trusty friend And gie's a hand o' thine We'll tak' a cup o' kindness yet, For Auld Lang Syne Robert Burns (1759-1796) Were we to mean it, not just for a day, but for all year long, 2005 will indeed be a "Happy New Year" for all mankind!
