Ritual

 

The wine sparkles,

And so do the people;

We sing a few lines

Of Robert Burns;

 

The old year,

Like an outworn garment,

Falls away;

The new one shimmers

In a haze of drink.

 

We laugh and dance

And toast the future;

We make resolutions

We intend to break;

 

We teeter

Between hope and fear,

Just like we did

Last year.