On a night like New Year’s Eve, when everyone dresses up and dances into the night in celebration of a new day, life can feel like a vibrant dream, reminiscent of a fairytale.
Thinking back, in Cinderella’s case though, the magic lasted only until midnight. Once she got ready to attend the ball with the help of her fairy godmother, rode away into the night on her pumpkin-turned-carriage, and danced on glass with her true love, our princess only had a few brief hours to seize her opportunity at a life of royalty and freedom, before she morphed back into a withered servant.
Indeed, Cinderella’s pre-midnight-magic enabled her life changing dance with the prince during the ball; nevertheless, the true spark, the main event, if you will, occurred following the ball, after the clock struck twelve, as the prince sought through the entire kingdom to find his mystery girl the next day. And when he did, it was love at first sight all over again, even after the magic seemingly expired. Soon after, Cinderella turned into a princess, but more importantly, she became an autonomous individual without the help of any “bippity boppity boo” magic, but as a result of her own power and choice to keep hope alive for love. She courageously shattered conventional class standards, to openly welcome what the future beheld for her, even after the magic faded.
Here in reality, the defining moment of our New Year’s Eve will also be when the clock strikes twelve – with champagne bubbling, corks popping, glittering confetti streaming through the air, and lovers sharing a kiss at the final countdown. Even though our evening festivities peak at twelve AM, New Year’s Eve celebrates the lasting promise of new beginnings, full of excitement, hope, romance, and infinite possibility, that continue well beyond the “3-2-1” into the following chapters of our lives.
So with all due respect to the classic tale, Cinderella’s fairy godmother was wrong: the magic doesn’t expire at midnight; midnight is just the beginning. Let us celebrate this next beginning to embrace all of the enchanting, fresh chances that follow the countdown. As Cinderella teaches us in part, we must bask in the magic that lingers on the other side of midnight – the wonder that perpetuates eternally that doesn’t come from the wave of a wand, but from within ourselves and our faith in the sparkling mystery of what’s next.
