No Resolutions, Just Back-eyed Peas

I won't be making any resolutions on New Year's Day but I will be making black-eyed peas. I grew up in a family that was not in general superstitious, but which held firmly to the belief that it was necessary to eat black-eyed peas on New Year's day to assure luck and prosperity throughout the coming year. Sometimes they were part of a bigger meal and sometimes it was just black-eyed peas and corn bread, but there were alway black-eyed peas on New Year's Day. The only part of the black-eyed peas I liked was the foil wrapped coins that were thrown into the pot to assure prosperity. I became an expert at getting my serving from the bottom of the pot where there were the most coins to be found.

Having been forced to suffer through eating black-eyed peas on New Year's Day every new year of my childhood, I felt it was only right to force my children to do the same. I did, and we still do, forgo the coins in the pot.....taking a child who has swallowed a quarter to the hospital doesn't seem like a very lucky way to start the year. My kids never much liked them, but have tolerated the custom so we will be having our final celebration of this holiday season on Saturday when we all get together to choke down some black-eyed peas. Lots of corn bread and maybe a ham and some macaroni and cheese will make it all good.

I figure with all the luck and prosperity I will get from eating the black-eyed peas, I don't really need to make any resolutions.

Does your family have any New Year's traditions?