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Thursday, February 5, 2009

Repetition

For TOP - Repetition

ANOTHER DAY; ANOTHER…NEW YEAR?

Is it New Year again, already?
It seems like only yesterday
But, then again, perhaps it was
Time flies so fast, it’s hard to say

As one year ends, another New Year
Rides the cycle of repetition
But who can say which is New Years Day?
Each culture has its own tradition

Was New Year’s Day the first of the first
As Gregorian calendar states?
Eastern Orthodox Church year begins
The fourteenth (first, by Julian dates)

Back in Old Russia, the fifteenth day
Of the first month was Happy New Year
And one of twelve animals greets us with
‘Kung Xi Fat Choi’; you know I refer

To Chinese New Year; the year of the Ox
Lunar cycle, twenty sixth, just gone
But this could occur, depending on year
Between Jan and Feb twenty one

Then in Japan, twenty seventh of Jan
The tradition has been preserved
Yet in Tibet, New Year is set
Jan thru Mar, when Losar is observed

In case I missed you in January
I’ll repeat it for your benefit
‘Happy New Year to one and all’
But that isn’t the end of it

On the first of March, in old time Venice
They held their New Year festival
And March sees the Vernal Equinox
Some found this date more logical

Traditional springtime ceremonies
Mark the old year, over and done
Tamil Nadu, thirteenth, fourteenth March
Baha’i – Naw Ruz – day twenty one

Bengali, centrally on day fifteen
In Kashmir, the nineteenth, by the way
Thelemic New Year, moon permitting
On day twenty…give or take a day

Saka is Balinese, Javanese
On March thirty, New Year is beckoned
In Andhra Pradesh, it’s Tulugu
On March, or April the twenty second

To all you modern-day April Fools
An excuse to joke and play
But April the first, was the first of the year
To Assyrians, back in the day

Also in April, the sixth day sees
In UK, the New Tax Year begin
While on the thirteenth, the Sikhs celebrate
And their own New Year is let in

From the thirteenth to the fifteenth day
Treat the New Year with TLC
In Thailand, Laos and Cambodia
April’s three days of festivity

‘Sawasdee Pi Mai’, the greeting in Thai
As Songkhran water battles take place
Get soaking wet…or try to stay dry
If you find you can’t take the pace

New Year in French Republican times
Was the twenty second September
And Diwali repeats annually
In October or November

November thirty; St Andrew’s Day
Or the Sunday closest to this date
Is Roman Catholic Ecclesiastic
New Year for priests to celebrate

12 comments:

  1. History, anthopology, culture and geography- could you squeeze any more in. lol Thanks for the read.

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  2. Poetry as encyclopedia. Love it!
    Best to celebrate daily. Happy New Day, to you!!!

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  3. Hi Stan, dead good as ever, but you missed one thing, My Birthday - My New year starts on Aug 25th...

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  4. That is seriously impressive. You make me wish my social studies textbooks had been written in poetic form!

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  5. An enlightenment in timely fashion! Love this ~ I'll check back to confirm events...

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  6. Thanks to:
    Susan; I wanted to but was too busy celebrating New Year in...
    Anthony North; happy New day to you too.
    Andy; Well. it really is a new year for someone every day.
    Kristina; That would make it so much easier to learn!
    Tumblewords; I may have missed some dates, but the list is long.

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  7. Gosh !! this is so much researched ... so apt for the prompt :)

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  8. Interesting New year approach! I sure learned a lot from this post!
    I've got one you didn't mention:
    the Hebrew New Year "Rosh Hashana" begins it, which means "head of the year" and the last day of the 10 days of atonement ("Yom Kippur" in Hebrew) ends it, which is the holiest day of the yr It is based on the lunar calendar.

    The Jewish New year is serious not frivolity: intense prayer, etc and is in the month of "tishri" and the date changes slightly (too hard to explain), but in the "American" calendar it falls in Sept or Oct. and it's always the holiest days of the Jewish Yr.

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  9. Thanks to:
    Pretty Me; Rather than repetition of lines, I opted for an occasion that is repeated - in more ways than one.
    Gel; Another date to add to my New Year calendar, and all the 'background' info is appreciated.

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  10. it seems as tho it is always new years somewhere huh?? cause for celebration?? or useless repetition... will we ever really know for sure???

    i love repetition in poetry tho,, so this was a winner with me......

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  11. Thanks Paisley; Repetition is the way we begin the learning process, as well as being a symbol continuation.

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  12. i can see him sitting there... i will gladly pay you tomorrow for a hamburger today as he considers the day's full meaning...

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