Kids’ wishes for the New Year

Dubai

It’s not just adults who ring in the New Year with excitement; children approach it with an infectious joy as plans and dreams tumble around in their fertile minds. Gulf News asked the young ones to offer a peek into their imagination and found a myriad wishes waiting to be fulfilled.

Majid Kayali, a 10-year-old Syrian kid in grade 4, can hardly contain his excitement of spending New Year’s Eve with his family. “I celebrate my birthday on New Year’s Eve, which makes every year’s beginning special,” he said.

He also has a favourite destination to revisit in 2018 — Global Village. “If there is one place that I would want to go to in 2018, it would be the Global Village because I enjoy my time with my family there,” Kayali added.

For Remas Hamouda, a 10-year-old Canadian in grade 5, and her sister, Retal Hamouda, a 9-year-old Canadian in grade 4, a big transition occurred in their lives in 2017. “We moved to Dubai, so we hope to go back and visit Canada in 2018,” the two sisters said in unison.

But Remas has another wish too: “I hope to become a healthy person since I eat a lot of junk food, and I am also a bit lazy.”

Retal said she always looks forward to being with her family and next year would be no different for all special occasions “because [my family] are my support,” she added.

Jennifer Shmiet, 5, Lebanese in KG2, is all agog about the birth of her sister, Jessica in 2017. “For the new year, I wish I could get a Barbie car to ride in with my baby sister,” said Jennifer.”

“I want to go with my baby sister, and my cousin, to play in the snow in Lebanon next year,” she added.

For Hamad Sharifi, an Iranian 9-year-old in grade 5, and his brother, Tameem Sharifi, a 7-year-old in grade 3, watching the laser show and fireworks with their family is what they enjoy the most when ushering in the New Year. But Tameem also has other ambitions. “For 2018, I wish for a huge dinosaur as a pet, and to visit Lebanon and China,” he added.

As for Humaid Al Khayat, an Emirati 10-year-old in grade 5, imbibing the great qualities of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, is one of his main wishes for the upcoming years. He also wishes to meet the famous YouTuber Logan Paul. “[Meeting him] has always been my dream. He came to Dubai in 2017 but I wasn’t able to meet him,” Al Khayat added.

For others, like Saleh Wazni, an 8-year-old in grade 4, his biggest wish for 2018 is to “become a good football player, and meet Cristiano Ronaldo.”

“I learnt parasailing in 2017, and I would like to experience it again in the coming years,” he said.

Sabina Hamouda, a 5-year-old Russian in grade 2, and her cousin Wassim Hamouda, a 9-year-old in grade 4, a family gathering at their grandmother’s house is what makes New Year’s Eve memorable. “We go to our grandmother’s house, play with our cousins, eat cake, and throw confetti all around the place,” the Hamouda sisters told Gulf News.

(Falak Kassab is an intern with Gulf News)