Interesting New Year's Traditions

over the world. Four West Ranch students share their own particular traditions, shedding light on the unique cultures on this campus alone.

For Janice, New Year’s is a time for family. True to Korean customs, Janice participates in the traditional bowing ceremony, or jeol, that the youth of each family typically perform for their elders as a sign of respect in exchange for small envelopes of money. Janice explains, “Our family obviously is less traditional because we don’t dress up in our traditional Korean clothes, but we still go to our grandpa’s house and we do the jeol. We get sebae don which is where we get money for doing the bowing ceremony.” Afterwards, Janice and her family enjoy a bowl of rice cake soup, or tteok guk. “Eating the tteok guk the birthdays by year, not actual birthdays,” Janice explains. For Janice, eating a meal with her extended family and of this tradition that she has been enjoying for her whole life.

New Year’s is not only for spending time with family but also making sure good luck passes on. Drestine’s family makes sure that every light in their house is turned on to ensure a brighter start to the new year and to bring in good luck. “Ten minutes before the new years we have to turn on all of the lights in the house. It doesn’t matter if it’s a lamp or a bathroom light we have to turn it on. It’s to bring luck for the new years and to make the house brighter for the new year.” Another tradition her family has is making as much noise as possible when the clock hits midnight, which she explains is “to scare away the bad luck of the previous year and introduce new luck.” Drestine also it’s only done once a year and we’re all together when we do all those things so it makes it feel more merrier and more at home. You have all these people around you that love and support you and you know you’ll conquer the new year together.”

over the world. Four West Ranch students share their own particular traditions, shedding light on the unique cultures on this campus alone.

Freshman Kishneet Kuar enjoys New Year’s Day immersed in temple to “spend time with family and God.” Kishneet enjoys a a traditional rose milk beverage, rooh afza. The day is always lighthearted and jubilant, never too heavy. “It’s just to have fun,” she explains. “It is a way for all of my family to be together in one place with our friends because everyone just meets up there.”

Everyone celebrates New Year’s differently and that is what makes it so special. Giana’s family has a well-known tradition part is drinking champurrado with my family and just being chocolate. It is made with cinnamon sticks, masa harina (corn of course, the chocolate. “What makes this all special is that this is the season and time for everyone to come along together and just spend time with each other,” she said. New Years is a perfect time to be with the ones you love and celebrate different traditions to remember those times before us.