At the closing of one year and the beginning of the next, I often feel unfinished — like I need more time. It is like the end of a timed exam and I am still writing at the sound of the bell, completely disregarding that I am able to continue after midnight.
New Year’s is a joyous occasion in Jamaica, a welcomed clean slate. Christmas is reflective, a rebirth and renewal, and by New Year’s you’re born again. There is no looking in the rearview mirror. On any given year, Jamaica sees many trails and ups and downs, and the New Year is a ray of hope when many look forward to change. And for most, the best place to start is in Church at watch night services.
If your New Year’s Eve visit to Jamaica is spent at a local resort, your experience will be 100% different from what I am about to describe. Also, if a countdown to the New Year is important to you, I highly suggest that you stay at a resort or in your personal surroundings to accommodate such desires. While you’ll find dances and live sessions throughout the island, they usually don’t start until in the wee hours of the morning and go all day long on New Year’s Day. I must admit New Year’s Eve celebrations were most exciting as a kid. It felt like something amazing was about to happen at the strike of midnight. We would light firecrackers and run through the streets in delight, awaiting the New Year’s arrival. I wouldn’t call them “fireworks,” but the tradition of celebrating with firecrackers is reserved for New Year’s in Jamaica and not Independence Day like in North America. It is also mostly enjoyed in a juvenile fashion, kids — it’s our freedom — staying up until midnight and playing outside after dark was otter joy.
For the coming of age or “born again” adult, it’s baptism season. “The New Year must find you in church” is the most notable and noble stance you’ll find on the island. Yes, that magic as a child, where something amazing is about to happen, brings in new life to the lives of so many year after year. When we’ve outgrown the childish delight of firecrackers and starlights, we get baptized and witness baptisms. I don’t mind missing a countdown; watch night service sermons go on beyond midnight, without acknowledging the start of a New Year. What I do mind is the inaction inherent in our belief, in this dress rehearsal of rebirth, that change is inherently guaranteed and thus, a right. Jamaica, no problem mon. New Year’s day like most holidays in Jamaica is enjoyed at the beach to reconnect with loved ones and “wash the old year off.” A cultural baptism. If there were ever a year to wash off, it’s 2020, but in the year 2021 and beyond, let’s continue to push acting beyond rituals and intentions. Let’s work on being the change we want to see.
Celebrate the New Year however you please, but know that this is neither a timed exam nor will there be a new you at the strike of midnight. I am happy to say that at this time, I do not feel unfishished, but whole. I understand that the better half of this New Year will most certainly look the same as the year before; I welcome it with arms wide open.
Happy New Year!