Voila! So, you’ve nicely enjoyed the Christmas pie, the reindeer sled sightings, the snowman, the ostentatious Christmas tree decorations, the gifts you always wanted from Santa Clause, the carols, and Church visits. Whoohoo... Seems like you’d a great Christmas celebration! Fabulous! But wait, is Christmas the end of all the great fun and frolic that surrounds this festive season? Umm... I guess, you know it’s not! Right? That’s awesome! You guys are really picking up things very fast. Kudos, sweets! Yes, we’re awaiting the magnum opus (don’t know the word? Get your dictionary right away. It will help you in being smarter, trust me) celebration of the New Year.

The New Year’s Eve is the perfect time to start new things with a promise of working hard, being kind and helpful, and by seeking God’s blessings. Therefore, this is the occasion when people make New Year resolutions and decide what they need to do to achieve their goals with a sense of positivity. The New Year celebration is carried out with loads of pomp and opulent feastings. Today, January 1 is globally considered as the most popular date for the New Year’s beginning. Surprisingly, this concept of celebrating New Year on this particular date is pretty new. 

As you know, it’s a tradition at Best Brains to give you great information about the birth and evolution of every subject we talk about. Therefore, we will follow it up with this one as well. Now, my dear friends, stuff your pockets with chocolates (not many, remember you might acquire cavities in teeth?), cookies, nuts and all that yummy things you like and read further, as you enjoy learning about new things about the upcoming New Year! 

Early civilizations celebrated New Year on different dates. For example, the Babylonians (people of the ancient city Babylon of Mesopotamia, now in Iraq) were the earliest to commemorate (again, check your dictionary for its meaning) the festivities for the arrival of the New Year. Their celebrations dated back to about 4,000 years! Therefore, the tradition of New Year is very old, but celebrating it precisely on 1st Jan is very new. That is the difference. Okay, so continuing, Babylonians marked their New Year somewhere between the mid of March. This was the harvest time for the people of Babylon and they followed it up with the festival Atiku, which lasted for 11 days, marking the defeat of the evil Sea God Tiamat by the Sky God Marduk. In addition, this festival signified the crowning of new kings in the kingdom.

Moving on, most civilizations across the globe would celebrate New Year as a mark of the beginning of some astronomical or harvesting periods. Interestingly, Egyptians celebrated the New Year with the annual flooding of the river Nile. On the other hand, the Chinese celebrated this occasion on the second day of Winter Solstice. 

Now, since you know about the different cultures and their respective dates of New Year celebrations, let’s understand why the present generation marks Jan 1st to be beginning of the year. Here’s the story – The ancient Romans used a calendar that consisted of 10 months and 304 days. Later, King Numa Pompilius added two more months – Januaries and Februaries. This addition of extra two months to the calendar created many problems to synchronize the dates. Therefore, King Julius Caesar (Queen Cleopatra’s husband) revamped the calendar to give it the essence of that of the Gregorian calendar. For your information, Gregorian calendar is the most popularly followed calendar today.

As part of his reform, Caesar instituted January 1 as the first day of the year, partly to honor the month’s namesake: Janus, the Roman god of beginnings, whose two faces allowed him to look back into the past and forward into the future. Romans celebrated by offering sacrifices to Janus, exchanging gifts with one another, decorating their homes with laurel branches and attending parties. As per a day in the Gregorian Calendar of Christendom, New Year's Day marked the Feast of the Circumcision of Christ. It is still observed as such in the Anglican Church and Lutheran Church.

So, this was the real story behind the institutionalizing of the New Year’s date. Hope it helped you to gain some knowledge. Now since you know this great tale, why don’t you flaunt it in front of all your friends? I’d like to tell you one thing – knowledge is the best thing that you can carry with yourself because it never leaves your side. Your favorite chocolate may go out of stock, that video game you enjoyed may get destroyed; but knowledge is always with you, it is always there for you! So, keep learning new things and acquiring new knowledge. With Best Brains, we strive to unleash your true potential so that you grow up to be well-informed, knowledgeable and successful adults. 

So, until next time, keep sharing your knowledge with everyone around, and enjoy this festive spirit of loving and sharing. And as William Shakespeare says, “Ignorance is the curse of God; knowledge is the wing wherewith we fly to heaven.” Keep learning and keep flying high! Best wishes to all of you.

Wishing you all a very joyful, prosperous and successful New Year from our team of 'Best Brains.' Keep that smile on, cheers!

Hurray! Make merry friends, it's Christmas time! Yes, it's time to store up on your stockings, clean your chimney, sing carols and anticipate the long list of goodies you want from Santa! Let me tell you, you will get all of it and much more. You've been a great kid all year long. So, in those circumstances, you are sure to receive everything from God and his son Jesus Christ, after all, it's Christ's birthday.

Well, since we're rejoicing in the Christmas spirit, let me ask you something. Do you really know why mommy daddy and everyone around decorate the Christmas tree and celebrate Christmas with all pomp and show? Umm... A little confused? Okay! Let's tell you a story. So, bring yourself a cookie, sit back comfortably and enjoy this amazing tale of the significance of Christmas.

First of all, let's talk about the Holy Spirit. He is the symbolization of Divinity. He was born at a time when the world was filled up with evil monsters, yes, all your scary demons and mean people. Christ's birthday was a symbol of simplicity. 

It was over 2,000 years ago that there lived a woman named Mary; she was engaged to Joseph. One day Angel Gabriel appeared before her and said, "God has been very kind to you. You will become pregnant by the Holy Spirit and give birth to His Son. You will call him Jesus." Mary was very afraid, but she obliged due to her unshakable faith in God. She replied, 'Let it happen as God chooses." Joseph, Mary's fiancé, was worried that Mary is pregnant even before their marriage. Then Angel Gabriel came in his dream and said, "Don't be afraid to have Mary as your wife. She would give birth to God's son. This boy will go on to save the world and be the ‘Savior.' Joseph woke up the next morning and did as he was told and took Mary to be his wife.

During that time, Mary and Joseph lived in the Roman Empire. The Kingdom's emperor Augustus announced an official decree that whosoever are living in the Kingdom must pay taxes, otherwise leaves for their original homeland. Mary and Joseph traveled to Bethlehem because that was Joseph's native place. During the course of their travel, they found it very difficult to find a place to stay. Finally, unable to find a proper shelter, the parents had to settle for a stable. At that place, Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ!

As Christ came into this world, many more angels appeared, lighting up the sky. They were heard praising God and singing: 'Glory to God in the highest and peace to everyone on earth.’ Angels came down to the local shepherds and told them, "Don’t be afraid. A Savior is born to help you. He will be in the manger." The shepherds went to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph. Baby Jesus was lying in a manger as the angels had told them. When they saw him, they told everyone what the angel had said and everyone who heard the story was astonished. Then the shepherds returned to their sheep, praising God for sending his Son to be their Savior.

The entire sky was lit up, and there was a star glowing with unmatched brilliance. A few very wise men saw it and were sure that it signified the birth of a very great king. They began to follow the star that led them to Mary and Joseph's stable. The very wise men bow down to Jesus' parents and  presented Jesus with gifts, which they had brought along with them. The gifts were gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

So, my little friends, this was the story of our beloved Jesus Christ. As you would have observed, God's son was not born in a grand palace. He was not born to very wealthy or learned parents. Jesus Christ was born in a simple lowly place, a corner of a stable. He was born to humble and poor parents, who had nothing to boast about, except their own spotless character and holiness. His birth scene shows us that even the greatest of all individuals came into this world with utmost simplicity, holiness and lack of grandeur. 

So, do not wish for very expensive gifts or dream of wealth and luxury. Instead, wish for love and happiness because simplicity and good character will keep you closer to God. So, do you want to be good children and become nearer to God and His son? Then, spread happiness, study well in schools just like Best Brains that helps you to reach your true potential, and be very obedient to your parents. That's it! You will always remain happy and become great people when you grow up! 

    

Here's wishing you Merry Christmas from the entire team of Best Brains. Stay blessed! Cheers!!!