December 28 is “Good Riddance Day”, at least in NYC. For the past thirteen years, celebrants gather in Times Square where they get to “pulverize unwanted memories with the help of an industrial strength shredder.” The organizers are expecting 2020 to be a banner year for riddances.
This year, Good Riddance Day falls on Boxing Day which is celebrated in the UK and countries that were part of the Commonwealth. This seems a fitting alignment as both holidays involve giving. In the former, the gift is to oneself; in the latter, the gift (food-filled boxes) is to others.
I remember being glad to learn that Boxing Day had nothing to do with fisticuffs. Maybe there was more to learn about Good Riddance Day. I wish I’d just stuck with what I’d learned in the WSJ article, but forgetting that enough was enough, I Googled “Unusual Holidays in December. “ A pathetic list- “Special and Wacky” appeared. Aptly named. Cotton Candy. Fritters, Brown Shoes, Bouillabaisse, Fruitcake, Oatmeal Muffins, Chocolate Covered Anything…they all have their special December day. I hope the organizers of Good Riddance Day don’t feel slighted that their holiday didn’t make the list. It doesn’t feel the least bit wacky, and “special” carries a lot of baggage.
Good Riddance Day feels like a very good way of clearing out the old to make way for the new. Of making a symbolic gesture confirming a belief that “Hope smiles on the threshold of the year to come.” (You know by now that’s from Tennyson.)
Banish the skeletons! “Start spreading the word… Good Riddance Day can make it anywhere!”