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| Kamden Shallis signing to West Virginia University surrounded by his parents and Coach Sherman! | Martinsburg High School Logo! | Haylee Sherman signing to Shepherd University! |
New Years Resolutions: Celebrating An Over 4,000 Year Old Tradition!
By: Ruth Amoreno
New Years Resolutions have been around for over 4, 000 years. New Years Resolutions were created by the Babylonians who lived in south eastern Mesopotamia. According to BecauseIsaidiwould.org, "They created New Years Resolutions to please their gods during an eleven day festival called Akitu."
According to Cambridge.org, “New Years Resolutions are classified as a promise that you make to yourself to start doing something good or stop doing something bad at the start of the year. People make New Years Resolutions to provide themselves the opportunity to start new and get things right.” Now let’s see what people’s New Years Resolutions are for the year.
Students at Martinsburg High School were interviewed to see what they want to make out of 2023. Rebekka Montealgre has said that her New Years Resolution is “Passing this school year.” When asked how she intends to achieve her New Years resolution she said “by paying attention in class.” Hannah Elfers was also interviewed; she said that her New Years resolution is “Being happy, and that the reason her New Years resolution is being happy is she is tired of being sad.” Rebecca Magruder said her New Years resolution is “ Being Happy .” When asked how she intends to achieve it she said “I am going to focus on myself more.” Isaiah Dawson said his New Years Resolution for this year is to “get his first job." When asked how he intends to achieve it he said, “by applying for jobs.”
A survey was also put out to the public to find out if they made a New Years Resolution, what it was, and if they stuck with it. Of the five people that responded all five made New Years Resolutions. Out of the five people, only two did not stick with their resolution. Their responses consisted of: maintaining their GPA, eating healthy and exercising, putting themselves first, and reading more. Well that is everything you never thought you would learn about New Years Resolutions. Happy New Year to you all!
Lunar New Year: The Year of the Rabbit Commences!
By: Jason Bednarski
It might seem like every part of the world celebrates New Year’s on January 1st. But did you know that there is a different celebration called the Lunar New Year which is celebrated by Chinese, Vietnamese, and Koreans. The Lunar New Year celebration is a 15 day festival filled with traditions and this year it will start on January 7th and will end on January 22nd when the Lunar New Year has officially started. Each year the Lunar New Year has one of the 12 zodiac animals that will represent that year.
According to History.com, the Lunar New Year every year has a different one of the 12 zodiac animals. These are a rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. The New Year also has 5 elements which are earth, water, wood, fire, and metal. Each year is mapped onto the traditional lunar calendar, so each year is associated with an animal that corresponds to one of the five elements. According to Mrs. Yan the Chinese teacher at Martinsburg High School, “There are only 12 zodiac animals and according to legend there isn’t a cat on the list because the cat and the rat where riding the ox and the rat pushed the cat off of the ox into the water so the cat got upset so it wasn’t put on the list.” For the 2023 Lunar New Year it is known as the year of the rabbit and the last year it was the year of the rabbit was in 2011. The Lunar New Year can trace its roots back to the 14th century B.C. The Shang Dynasty, under Wu of Han, started the tradition of carrying out rituals on the first Lunar New Year.
The Lunar New Year is a celebration with its own traditions and customs. Often in preparation for the New Year, people will clean their houses thoroughly. This is done because it is believed that cleaning your house will rid it of inauspicious spirits that may have collected during the last lunar year. Some will hold rituals where they will offer food and paper icons to their ancestors and it is where the elders will give their grandchildren decorated envelopes which contain money. The last thing that happens during the celebration is the Lantern Festival which concludes the holiday with parades, dances, games and fireworks marking the finale of the holiday. According to Mrs.Yan, “Every Chinese New Year I remember that I would receive a gold coin as my gift from my family.”
The Lunar New Year is also known for a time of feasting. During this time foods are made with glutinous rice because these foods represent togetherness. In Chinese culture fish is typically included in the last course because in the Chinese language, the pronunciation of “fish'' is the same as “abundance.” Some of the other foods served during the Lunar New Year are moon-shaped rice cakes, and dumplings. “During the Chinese New Year me and my family would eat chicken, duck, and sometimes other meat. Also it is tradition for some people to eat fish during the celebration, but my family did not eat fish", said Yan.
Rihanna Returns for Super Bowl LVII!
By: Ruby Amores
Produced by DPS with Roc Nation and Jesse Collins as executive producers and Hamlisch Hamilton as director, Rihanna is coming to the Super Bowl. The time has come for Rihanna to finally step back into the entertainment industry, doing so in the most iconic way possible, performing the Super Bowl LVII Halftime show. This year the Super Bowl will take place in the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on Sunday Feb 12th, 2023 at 6:30 pm EST. Rihanna was booked to perform at the Super Bowl by none other than Jay-Z himself saying, “Rihanna is a generational talent, a women of humble beginnings who has surpassed expectations at every turn.”*In the past the Super Bowl halftime show has been sponsored by Pepsi, but this year halftime will be sponsored by Apple Music. The President of Apple Music said “We are excited to partner with Rihanna—what an incredible artist for the inaugural Apple Music Super Bowl halftime show."* The last time Rihanna did a public performance was 2016 while she was on “The Anti World Tour” in support of her latest released album “Anti." Many of Rihanna’s fans are excited for her to return to the stage including several MHS students. “I’m very excited considering it's been a while for her,” said MHS Junior, Isabel Banks. Some fans have specific songs they wish to hear such as MHS Sophomore, Vaylee Olack. “I would love to see her perform ‘Diamonds’ and ‘Love on the Brain," said Vaylee. Other fans are just eager to see her perform again, “I do not have a particular song of hers to perform because I love all her songs,” said MHS freshman, Mady Deleon.
It is not uncommon for even non-sports-fans to watch the Super Bowl just for the iconic commercials and the celebrity performances. “I’m not the biggest fan of football but I’ve watched the Super Bowl every year since I was a kid with my family. I watched for the sport and the halftime show,” said Mady. For some, the Super Bowl is not just a regular football game but a time for families to come together.
Back in 2019 Rihanna was invited to perform the Super Bowl halftime show. Rihanna declined the offer in solidarity to Colin Kaepernick the former San Francisco quarterback who was blacklisted by the NFL for kneeling during the National Anthem. It is unclear why she accepted the invitation this year specifically.
