New Year Celebrations are a wonderful way to take time to contemplate and set goals for the coming year - or open up to allow for change to be a good thing in our lives!  In most cultures there is some form of New Years Day celebrations, sometimes unrelated to the western calendar.  Some take the traditions more seriously in terms of requiring contemplation, prayer and forgiveness, while other traditions simply are ways to celebrate, honor the family, or come together as a community to welcome in any changes (out with the old, in with the new).  The history is less important for this blog as the fact that it has been a tradition carried on by most every culture and/or religion throughout history (some believe it was the Mesopotamians (Modern Iraq) over 2,000 before the common era (BCE), while others date it to Julius Cesar around 46 BCE to celebrate the birthday of Janus the God of January).  For that reason, the idea of celebrating the New Year carries different meaning depending on where one is living in the world.  Most celebrations include the idea of it being a time to put the past behind and welcome in new opportunities - "out with the old and in with the new."  In western culture most view it as a time consciously reflect on our lives and to come up with resolutions or goals to reach in the new year, a time to change habits that no longer serve us. 
Whatever your background is with respect to this celebration be easy on yourself!  Try to set goals you can reasonably attain, and if you exceed them, then GREAT!  Setting too many goals or setting unreasonable standards are ways for us to judge ourselves harshly later.  A good exercise might be to pick two or three reasonable goals, and really endeavor to consciously achieve them. 
One of my goals for this year is to set specific times each day (not long maybe two 10 minute time periods) to sit in stillness.  To just be  in the moment.  Another goal is to live less distractedly - turn my cellphone off for good blocks of time (yikes - words with friends in moderation!!!!).  These are goals I hope will make me more conscious about living life - making me and those around me more accepting and happy.  The more consciously we live, the more it is like a New Year Celebration every day!
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!!!!!