As the clock struck midnight on Jan. 1, 2025, one thing happened to be on the minds of many: how can this year be made better than the last one? Many people spend their New Year’s Eve prepping to make sure they’re starting the new year off correctly, and few are strangers to New Year’s superstitions.
These superstitions vary in their nature, common ones are sharing a kiss at midnight, wearing red underwear, or a very popular one online this year: eating 12 grapes at midnight.
These superstitions share a common goal: To bring good luck and prosperity into the new year in hopes of a brighter beginning. If only it things were this easy.
Rather than following these superstitions blindly, BBHHS English teacher Sarah Ignatz-Hoover has taken her own mixed method approach on starting her year strong.
Ignatz-Hoover sees the new year as a chance to start fresh and even chooses to participate in a few superstitions this year to keep things interesting. She shares that while she may not be relying on each of these traditions to make her year a good one, she recognizes the fun they can bring and also sees them as a good opportunity to being open minded.
“I’m not superstitious about the new year, but I do like starting the new year with a clean house, so I did like that tradition,” says Ignatz-Hoover.
This superstition also often translates into the weekly routine of many people, seeing Sunday as their weekly reset and taking the opportunity to start the week with a clean house, room, or office.
An article seen in Sterling Cleaning Services’ article, “11 Benefits of Clean Work Space,” explains that having a clean area to work allows for enhanced focus and productivity, reduced stress, encouraged personal growth, and more.
Each of these benefits is able to make a large difference in a person’s life, and there seems to be no greater motivation than the idea of yearlong productivity and growth.
While Ignatz-Hoover describes her New Year’s Eve with friends, she cannot not help but mention the fun they had while attempting the 12 grapes tradition.
She mentions talking to Spanish teacher, Lauren Spence prior to New Year’s Eve considering this tradition has Spanish origins. Through their conversation, Ignatz-Hoover learned that eating one grape for the first 12 strikes of the clock in the new year is supposed to be good luck.
In the Vogue article, “Why Do People Associate Eating Grapes on New Year’s Eve With Good Luck?” Christina Pérez describes this year’s internet phenomenon as somewhat ambiguous because there are “several ways to participate in the tradition.”
While many people, including Spence, suggest that the 12 grapes are to be eaten within the first 12 strikes of the clock, there’s also possibilities suggesting that they could be eaten before the first strike of midnight, or that in general, the grapes should be eaten under a table.
Pérez’s article comments on this strange tradition’s origin. Beginning in the late 1890s/early 1900s, the Spaniards started this tradition as a reason to get rid of excess grapes. Interviewees add their own takes on the tradition, suggesting that pairing it with other traditions can build intention and luck. However, this only plays so much into the year.
“I think there’s an element of luck,” Ignatz-Hoover says about going into the new year. “There are some things that happen throughout the years that you can’t control, but I do think the majority of it is working hard at just having a good mindset and positive energy. The more positive that you are, the more you feel like good things happen to you.”
