. Forget about January first. Now there is an arbitrary date. The year used to start in March, as evidenced by the fact that September, October, November, and December are etymologically derived from the Latin numbers seven, eight, nine, and ten. January and February were at one time, under different names, months eleven and twelve. So who cares about these historical and linguistic details? Only those who like to split hairs and count angels dancing on the head of the pushpin supporting the calendar on the wall. Great transitions rarely happen on January first. The entry of Fidel Castro into Havana in 1959 was this century's classic exception. With that out of the way, we can now get on with the real business of celebrating the arrival of the new millennium on a date that makes sense. (Fidel Castro, by the way, will conveniently exit his island vale of tears before we step over the threshold, and he will probably do it on January 1. How's that for a prediction?) According to Jungian psychologist Robert Johnson there are two great modern (post-Roman) myths in the western world -- the Holy Grail and Faust. The main hero of the Holy Grail story is Parsifal (or Perceval), the innocent fool who is given the gift of learning the secret of the Grail. The big moment in his quest comes on a Good Friday, after many years on the road, when he is made to realize that he has forgotten his goal and that it's time to get with the program. For Faust the fork in the road comes when the sounds of singing and dancing drift into his study from the street below, where the townspeople are celebrating Easter. The transition from one millennium to another is an event neither trivial nor tribal. The whole world, our global village now, is on the same rhythm -- commercially, certainly, and perhaps now, just a little, also spiritually. The Easter Season -- Springtime -- is the traditional time when new life is welcomed. The sun comes out at last, and people rejoice with optimism. Our own western myths, symbolic weavings of hidden forces we understand only dimly, serve as roadmaps in this time of boundless confusion. So we open our windows and listen to the music. And we hear a song that tells us to celebrate the transition to a new era in the year conventionally called TWO THOUSAND, from April 21 to 23, dates also known in some circles as Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Stay tuned for more...
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