New Year’s Eve is a very exciting holiday across the globe. People of many cultures celebrate the changing of the calendar. It’s a time to celebrate the past and look forward to what the future holds.

In the U.S., New Year’s Eve has become a time to have one last party of the year, and many people celebrate at bars or big parties. If this New Year’s Eve you’ve found yourself stuck in the under-21 crowd or you aren’t looking for a crazy night out, there are still plenty of ways to celebrate the holiday.

Staying in during New Year’s Eve is always a fun thing to do. It has been a New Year’s tradition to watch the ball drop in Times Square in New York City on TV. There are live performances from the hottest artists of the year, and lively news anchors narrating you through the final moments of 2016.

One of my favorite activities any time of the year is to sit and read a book. There is no better time of the year to do this than during the cold winter months. You can curl up by the fire with your favorite blanket and read the night away.

Another fun way to spend your New Year’s Eve at home is to have a big movie marathon. Either grab your closest friends, your family or just stay in and enjoy watching them yourself. I recommend watching Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining,” or one of many other classic films. Definitely have a large bag of popcorn and loads of cola to keep you stocked during the long-lasting marathon.

If you aren’t a big reader or movie watcher there is still a lot to do. You can make a list of crazy things to do and try them out. One of the best ideas I have heard is grabbing a bunch of friends and having everyone hop on a freight train together. Everyone leaves their phones at home to make it even harder and more fun for people to make it back home. Or you could do something slightly more safe like play a board game.

If you consider yourself a morning person rather than a night owl, you should probably not stay up late to watch the ball drop in New York. Set your alarm for before dawn so you can watch the sunrise. It will be a special memory considering most people are still asleep after such a long night of celebration.

I think the best thing you can do on the New Year’s Eve is combine all the previously stated ideas to create a New Year’s Eve spectacular. Start out the day by reading  your favorite book, and then invite all of your buddies over to watch one of your favorite movies. Then have a fun and festive dinner with those friends and family. Try to talk about the past year, its ups and its downs, and talk about what you want the coming year to entail. After dinner you should have an activity for everyone to partake in. I believe it would be worthwhile to do one of the many fun winter activities available to us. Ice skating is always fun, even when it’s hard for some to stand in skates, let alone ice skate in them. Another fun activity is building a snowman or having a snowball fight. Your group should then get to bed early so they all can be together in the morning to celebrate the first sunrise of the new year.

At this time of the year people are given the chance to reflect. To reflect on not just the happenings of the last year, but on a person’s entire life. Often we are overwhelmed by the time gone by, or we are overwhelmed by the sorrows we’ve experienced, but with a new year comes new hope. New hope of better times, or time more appreciated. This New Year’s, stay optimistic of the time yet to come.

Harrison is a sophomore in DGS.

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