Celebrating New Year's Eve in My Childhood Home Reminded Me to Love My Roots

Nothing really changes when the clock resets to January 1.Most of the transformation in my house happens the week before New Year’s Day, not after. When I come back to my childhood home from my apartment, I’m immediately roped into familiar preparations. Mites of dust disappear from the staircases and the blinds. Stray papers from my sister’s sketchbooks get thrown away, and the faded brown rug with flowers barely hanging onto their red and blue becomes visible again.