The end of the year is just around the corner. People are
preparing to bring in the New Year in ways they feel reflect their personality.
Goans had plans and were more than keen to reveal it to whomever was willing to
listen. It reflected their personality and style.
Shefali Temkar, an artist from Tivim,
plans on bringing in the New Year by focusing on painting. “I’m planning to
start off my new year with a bang and get a head start on my paintings. I don’t
have any plans to go out this year due to illness, so I thought that I might as
well use this as an opportunity to paint something different. I’d like to try
out new art styles like anime paintings and abstract expressionism, hoping to
improve my craft to get people to buy more of them. There’s also photography,
graphic and interior designing which I’m very interested in attempting in 2023,
and could be a career choice as well. So this New Year’s Eve is going to be me
focusing on myself, my future and career as a whole, basically a lot of heavy
thinking.”
The manner in which one celebrates the
onset of the New Year depends on one’s age. Siddhant Rao, an IT sector employee
who returned home to celebrate the New Year, reminisces about how his plans for
welcoming in the New Year have changed over time. “When I was younger, the
dilemma that I faced while making New Year plans centered on whether to spend
it with family or with one of the many friend groups I had ties with. Now that
I have become a working individual, it’s all about who is available and willing
to take some time out of their hard earned break. From extravagant plans in the
good old days to now settling for spending time at one friend’s house, ordering
in a couple of tasty dishes from a variety of restaurants, with accompanying
drinks to help ease the process of eating at a rapid pace. We also play games,
both physical and electronic to help pass the time till the clock strikes 12
and signifies the arrival of the New Year.”
Then there are those for whom the realities of academic life
reflect in their plans. The New Year plans of Sushant Majalikar, a MSc student
at Goa University, have been affected by the University’s exam schedule. “New
year’s eve has always been a blast for me every year, just hanging out with my
friends, relaxing, and then exploring Goa throughout the night. I was expecting
this new-year to give me an opportunity to try something new with my cousins,
but Goa University had already planned something else for me. Our end semester
exams have been scheduled for January 2, so I’ll be focusing on my studies this
New Year. Given the chance, I plan on taking a break at midnight to go
stargazing at Bogmalo.”
For Lin Ernest Da Costa, a student of Environmental Science,
welcoming in the New Year is a low-key affair, but an important starting point
with regards to his plans for the year. “I don’t make any special plans to
bring in the New Year. Due to family celebrations on December 31, we are quite
tired and opt to go for the morning mass rather than midnight mass. I wish
people at midnight, praying for a wonderful year, and set goals for the New
Year instead. For 2023, I plan to start finding new hobbies to work on, as well
as to start practicing the keyboard. Going to the gym and eating healthy is
another option that I am considering. I’d like to make health a priority and
welcome the new year with that mindset.”
Varad Naik generally welcomes in the New Year with his family.
“December 31 is my aunt’s birthday, so my family hosts a combined New Year
celebration. We utilize the morning to relax and contemplate our plans for the
year, before visiting my grandparents. This year our colony will also be having
its own new year celebration.”
Finally
there is Lenina Pereira, an undergraduate student at St Xavier’s College,
Mapusa who expressed her gratitude for the past year as she welcomes in the New
Year. “As the year comes to its end, everyone inquires about my plans for New
Year’s Eve. My family and I prefer to indulge in the comfort of home, spending
the evening with cousins and relatives. We attend midnight mass to seek the
Almighty’s blessings while ushering in the New Year. I believe that it is
important to reflect back on the year’s experiences and journal them down. It
has always helped me to be grateful for all that I’ve gone through, all the
people I’ve met, the places I’ve been to and the obstacles I’ve faced this
year. Rather than setting a new year’s resolution, I write down steps to attain
an achievable goal to prepare for the new year.”
