18. Should auld acquaintance be forgot

Hundreds and hundreds of staff must have sung this Robert Burns song at numerous staff parties during the time that Joyce Green existed and many staff who were working at this time (i.e. night staff) must also have quietly mouthed or hummed this song on New Year's Eve as each year finally ended and gave way to the next one.

There has, after all, always been something deeply symbolic about rounding off the old year and welcoming the new one, hasn't there ?

But at the same time it's also worth remembering that at various times and in various places throughout medieval Christian Europe the start of the new year has been on a date OTHER THAN 1st January. The start of the year has - or so it seems - also been celebrated on 25th December, 1st March, 25th March and on Easter Day.

In fact it was not until 1582 that reform of the Gregorian calendar was responsible for restoring January 1 as New Year's Day.

At this point most Roman Catholic countries adopted the Gregorian calendar almost immediately but apparently it was only gradually adopted by Protestant countries and Great Britain, for example, did not adopt the reformed calendar until 1752. Until then it seems the British Empire and their American colonies still celebrated the new year in March.

Thus the date for celebrating the arrival of the New Year hasn't been at all constant. However perhaps one thing that HAS been constant through out time has been the annual wish to put certain things behind us as each year ends and to then to move forward as positively as possible into the new year ?

So maybe it worth ending the year by reminding ourselves of some of the words in one of the verses of that famous song by Robbie Burn's ?

"And here's a hand, my trusty fere !
And gie's a hand o' thine !
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne".

Good luck for 2007.