At 12:00 am this morning, my grandsons and I blew into our noise-makers and jumped up and down. We had a party in my living room to welcome the year 2012. I rushed them outside to try and catch the firework display with our binoculars and telescopes but there didn’t seem to be one. We came back in, ate some more, drank some more, called and sent text messages to our loved ones. They finally settled down just before 2 am and to sleep we all went.

And so goes our calendar New Year celebration every year. But for us, the real beginning of the year comes when the seasons shift, the air warms, and green begins to return to our yard.

New Year in Nipmuc Country begins with Spring planting time. The exact date varies from year to year. The Nipmuc Nation will celebrate the New Year at our Planting Moon celebration on Saturday, May 5th at Hassanamesit. Won’t you join us?