A New Year’s Wish

Today marks the “official” end of the Christmas season, and we will be marking the occasion by making one more stop on our journey to visit Desert Mission families and experience their holiday traditions. But this one is unique because it’s not a Christmas tradition per se – it’s a very special way to ring in the new year, courtesy of Mike P!

Mike’s family is of Volga German descent, and when he was a child much of his extended family lived near each other in Kansas. On New Year’s Day his parents would take him “wünsching” to the houses of their family members. Wünsche is the German word for wish, and the tradition was that in exchange for their New Year wishes, the adults would receive a drink while the kids would receive a coin. The day would end at Mike’s grandmother’s house, where the entire family would gather for dinner, drinks, and games.

You too can spread your New Year’s wishes in the Volga German style! If you are lucky enough to have lots of extended family around you, you can re-create Mike’s tradition pretty closely. But you might also visit the homes of your friends, or even ring doorbells in your neighborhood, and spread your New Year’s cheer that way. You can even use this German wünsche, either in its original language or using the English translation: Ich wünsche Euch Glück zum neuen Jahr, Gesundheit, Friede und Einigkeit, ein lange Leben und nach Eurem Tode die ewige Seligkeit – I wish you good luck for the New Year, health, peace and unity, a long life, and after your death, the eternal salvation of the soul.

Aside from being a great excuse to get together and celebrate the new year, this is a wonderful way to get your family thinking about their hopes for the next 12 months, not just for themselves, but for those they care about as well. And while we’ve already passed January 1, your new year can begin whenever you’re ready!

Glück zum neuen Jahr! What are your New Year’s wishes? Share them with us on Facebook or Instagram.