To show their seriousness they sign their names and deliver the paper to a parent for safe-keeping. Adults make equally ambitious resolutions:

   "I resolve to stop smoking."

   "I resolve to lose weight."

   "I resolve to learn a new language."

   Despite the sincerity of the resolutions, no one seems surprised that the determination to "turn over a new leaf" disappears before the new year is well started.

   Although New Year's traditions in the United States stem from as many cultures as do the people themselves, they have gradually assumed a typical American flavor. The giving of gifts, for instance, an important part of Roman and Old English tradition, has all but disappeared. Instead, New Year's cards are exchanged among friends and relatives, and commercial firms combine greeting with advertisement of their products by distributing calendars and small trinkets. There are, of course, notable survivals still followed in their original form. Two of the most cherished came from Scotland: toasting from the wassail bowl and the ever-popular song, "Auld Lang Syne."