(2022 photo by Robert Spears)
It’s back for 2024 – the New Year’s Day tradition that lines Alki Beach with hundreds of people ready to at least briefly submerge themselves in the chilly water of Puget Sound! We just received the announcement from organizer Mark Ufkes:
Optimists unite! Make no mistake about it; Life continues to get better! Our nation continues to get better! Remember, the glass is always way more than half full.
Alki Beach, West Seattle, again this year. We go into the water at 10:00 am sharp on January 1, 2024. Don’t be late. Over 1,000 participated last year, so plan for a crowd. We line up and down the quarter-mile beach, hold hands, and we start counting down from 10, 9, 8 . . . We yell “Happy New Year” and, together, rush wildly into the 47-degree water, screaming with joy! Holding hands and wearing bright colors seems to help. And we are only in the water for a short time. Yes, it’s a form of mild insanity, but a lot of fun too. And the hundreds of smiles before and after is the best part.
In our home, we have a candle service every Winter solstice (December 21), generally considered the end of the year by many ancient cultures. We blow out a candle to leave behind the complexities from last year, and then light the candle again, asking the Universe, in all her infinite wisdom (because God must be a woman after all) for more opportunities to be a better person.
Since our White Center home is too small for 1,000 of you, this year, we encourage all Polar Bear participants and guests to try this;
On a small piece of paper, write down what you want to leave behind from 2023 and what you want from the New Year for you, your family, and for our great nation. There will be a giant jar on a table at Alki beach, with a sign, and lots of pens and pads of paper, so that you can write and then insert your unsigned dreams and wishes list into the jar. We will save the contents for next year’s 2025 announcement.
Life is a clean slate on January 1. Be Brave. Take a deep breath of fresh mountain air. Inhale! Exhale!! Come share the joy of being alive here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Bring your friends and family. This is your year!
Requirements; be an Optimist, be in good health, bring a towel, good water shoes, a change of warm clothes and your hopes and dreams for 2024. 10:00 am sharp. And remember, how can we believe in you if you don’t believe in yourself?
While the crowd stretches quite a ways along the beach, Mark usually shouts the countdown from the vicinity of 57th/Alki.
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