Farewell Fire Monkey, hello year of the Fire Rooster

Carrie J. Puckette, Copy Editor

Is everyone as glad as I am that 2016 is over?

I’m sure you agree that we need a break from a year that was filled with terrorist attacks, the deaths of several beloved celebrities, and an election year that is not worth mentioning.

From my perspective, it wasn’t just news events. Crazy things seemed to happen in my personal life as well.

Last March, I found out I had a cyst in my abdomen the size of a football that had to removed. When the thing was removed in May, it was the first surgery I had ever had (I am now free of anything cancer-like). Later in the summer, I learned I needed another surgery, this time to get all four of my wisdom teeth removed in August.

If all of that wasn’t enough, I was in a car crash this summer that was my fault. Because my parents believe I should own up to my mistakes, I had to pay for the lawyer who helped me out, the car repairs and insurance, and the point reduction class. I had a much smaller bank account by the end of this, and my emotional equilibrium took a brutal blow when that car later broke down.

It was honestly the most stressful year of my life.

According to my aunt, there is a reason for this. If you are interested in Chinese astrology, you might already that Feb. 8, 2016, through Jan. 27, 2017, was the year of the Fire Monkey.  Chinese astrologers would say the reason 2016 was so chaotic is because of energy that comes with it – one that brings about great change, causing preconceived notions to hit the fan.

From their perspective, it’s a time of sweeping global change, including chaotic weather and war, which all have the possibility to worsen. It is also considered to be a year of accelerated progress. Because fire is a chaotic energy of the year, there is always the possibility of things spiraling out of control.

Key words to describe a Fire Monkey year include erratic, irresponsible, ingenious, clever, unpredictable, resourceful, adventurous, selfish, magical, quixotic, and amoral. Take your pick of any of them to describe the year, and I’m sure it would fit.

The last year that was a Fire Monkey year was 1956. Events of that year included:

  • Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
  • Elvis Presley hit the charts with “Heart Break Hotel.”
  • Norma Jean Mortenson became Marilyn Monroe.
  • Morocco declared independence from France.
  • Ninety-six U.S. Congressmen sign Southern Manifesto, a protest against 1954 ruling of Brown vs. Board of Education.
  • “My Fair Lady” played in New York City.
  • Pakistan becomes first Islamic republic.
  • The United Methodist Church in American decide to grant women full-clergy status, and called for end of racial segregation in the denomination.
  • Elvis Presley played “Hound Dog” on television and shocked audiences with his rocking pelvis.
  • The snooze alarm was invented.
  • The Summer Olympics were held in Stockholm, Sweden.
  • President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Federal Highway Act, creating the interstate highway system.
  • The deadliest airline crash ever happened on July 30, with two airplanes hitting each other mid air over Grand Canyon, source of sweeping changes to air traffic control.
  • Congress made “In God We Trust” the national motto.
  • The transatlantic telephone cable opens.
  • “Wizard of Oz” was the first 90-minute movie to be showed without a break.
  • Fidel Castro and followers make it to Cuba.
  • Japan becomes member of United Nations.
  • David Copperfield was born on Sept. 16.
  • Carrie Fisher was born on Oct. 21.
  • Bela Lugosi dead on Aug. 16.
  • Many other things happened, but I think all agree that the greatest thing from that year was the introduction of Elvis Presley.

This year, according to Chinese Astrology, is the year of the Fire Rooster, lasting from Jan. 28, 2017, to Feb. 16, 2018. According to this, it’s going to be a very frank and honest year, with no illusions and obsolete dogmas. Everyone knows where they stand, and new ideas come to light to be refined.

It is to be a year of awakening where the voices of the down trodden will be heard and hard work is rewarded. The fire of the Fire Rooster is one of optimism and confidence.

There will be further advances in technology, medicine, and human rights. However, there is a tendency of “strutting feathers,” so to speak, that might get a little out of hand.

All in all, a new astrological year is approaching, one in which we can all work to make the coming year better than the one that we are leaving behind.