Winter Garden Magazine January 2015 | Page 24

As we prepare to enter 2015, many people will celebrate different traditions passed down and learned for generations. Considering the title of this article, the notion of “ringing in” refers to the traditional ringing of bells at midnight, signifying the start of the New Year. This tintinnabulous tradition is practiced around the world, but is mostly prevalent in Italy and Japan. In Japan, bells are rung 108 times in alignment with the Buddhist believe that the action brings cleanliness. This is just one example of the many traditions celebrated around the world to signify the coming of the new year. Since we started with the ringing of bells, let’s continue exploring the noise-making element of the holiday. Party horns and sirens are frequently heard around the US, along with the familiar boom-pop of fireworks. Traditions such as this go back to ancient Thailand, where guns were fired to frighten off demons; early American Colonists practiced similar actions by firing off pistols into the air at midnight. In China, firecrackers and fireworks were first put into use in order to scare off evil spirits and misfortune.