Redding the house was one of the Scottish customs mentioned in a recent webinar put on as part of the Scottish SIG at Ontario Ancestors. The custom involved getting the household cleaned and in order at the end of the year to have a fresh start ready for Hogmanay, the greeting of the New Year. That struck a chord.
An end of the year cleanup has sometimes featured in my end of year rituals. But, as much of our lives have moved online, this year I found myself trawling through all those emails I've saved until later, especially the ones on my Gmail account "promotions" tab, with a plan of getting the backlog into more manageable shape. It's surprising what I've missed which I might have been interested in.
Recent emails to sign up for Rootstech 2022, which is going virtual again this coming year, also reminded me that I set up a playlist of what I wanted to watch for Rootstech 2021. Most of the sessions I tagged still wait unwatched on my list as other virtual events with shorter watching windows took over. It's now time to watch all the sessions I tagged, some of which are surprisingly short. I could have fit them in at any time. Why did I wait so long?
As I go through my Gmail account deleting emails with a sigh of relief and whip my way through my Rootstech playlist, I wonder how much of this end of the year cleanup is down to my Scottish roots. It's interesting the customs we carry on without thinking about where they came from.
Sources:
Scottish end of year customs: https://www.timetravel-britain.com/articles/christmas/hogmanay.shtml
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