Gong Xi Fa Cai!
Ever have one of those moments when you didn’t realize something about yourself until you catch yourself saying it out loud (or, in this case, texting it “out loud”)? Well I did a few days ago, and it was about the Lunar New Year (aka Chinese New Year).
My HR department sends these great little emails out once a week called “Family Fun for the Week of…” This week’s email included a link to the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA. This Saturday, the day after the start of the new Lunar Year, the museum is hosting a bunch of fun hands-on crafts as well as cultural performances to celebrate the Year of the Wood Horse. We take the kids to Boston’s Chinatown every year to watch the lion dances and eat dumplings at the Taiwan Café-but this seemed like a fun extension to our yearly tradition. I emailed the Esposo the link and then texted:
ME: Check your email! I sent you something fun.
HIM: That does look good.
ME: Right? I love Chinese New Year so much more than Western New Year.
HIM: I know.
ME: *has revelation about self*
In case the name “Mostly Irish” wasn’t obvious enough, I am not Chinese. I am not remotely Asian. I am, well, mostly Irish (with some English and French Canadian thrown in, for added flavor). I’m about as Traditionally Western as it gets (not the Wild West, mind you). But as I got older, I found myself endlessly fascinated by and drawn to Eastern Culture. I have no idea why this is. I didn’t grow up knowing many Asian families (or, well, any). There was only one Asian girl in my entire high school. My freshman/sophomore year college roommate was Laotian. That was about the extent of my practical life experience with Eastern Culture.
And I am not saying I am anywhere near experienced now. I’m kind of like…a first grader. Or hell, let’s call me a second grader so I can be on par with Patoot. Anyway, what I’m saying is: I’m learning. And I’m excited to be learning. But I don’t know much more than Patoot does. For Christmas, I got her the book “The Year of the Dog” by Grace Lin-partially because Patoot was born in the Year of the Dog, and partially because I want to open a window into more cultures for her. The Three Wise Men brought Patoot and the Munchkin a picture book about the Lunar New Year (also by Grace Lin), too. And as we read these books together, I learn as they learn.
I also find myself reading articles about the coming Lunar Year-its promises and its portents. And I find I prefer this way of looking ahead to the traditional “resolution making” of Western New Year. It’s like…I have this map in front of me, and how I choose to take advantage of what’s to come is on me. Unlike the Western New Year, where all you get is a blank page and a hangover.
I also love the ceremonies. The pageantry. And the family-friendly aspect of it all. Western New Year’s is NOT a family holiday. Boston does host First Night, to be fair-an all-inclusive outdoor festival of ice sculptures and street musicians. But it just doesn’t have the same level of time-honored tradition. Like, I KNOW it was an event made up specifically so parents who can't go out on New Year’s Eve had something to do with their kids. But the Lunar New Year has always been all-inclusive. Always all about family.
Does it make me a poser to adopt this tradition that I have no cultural right to? That I probably only half-celebrate and most likely understand even less? I’m not sure. But I hope not, because I honestly do love it. And I find it interesting that it’s a tradition I came to embrace on my own, without the benefit of growing up in it. So I will check my Chinese Astrology (as a Wood Tiger, the Year of the Wood Horse is supposed to be a good one for me-bonus!). I will mark Chinatown’s Lion Dance Parade on my calendar. I even snipped off a little of my hair last night before bed, since we read in “Year of the Dog” that’s it’s tradition to get a haircut before the New Year. And I will wish you all: Gong Xi Fa Cai!
Are there any traditions, celebrations, or holidays from a culture other than the one you were raised in that you find yourself drawn to?
My HR department sends these great little emails out once a week called “Family Fun for the Week of…” This week’s email included a link to the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA. This Saturday, the day after the start of the new Lunar Year, the museum is hosting a bunch of fun hands-on crafts as well as cultural performances to celebrate the Year of the Wood Horse. We take the kids to Boston’s Chinatown every year to watch the lion dances and eat dumplings at the Taiwan Café-but this seemed like a fun extension to our yearly tradition. I emailed the Esposo the link and then texted:
ME: Check your email! I sent you something fun.
HIM: That does look good.
ME: Right? I love Chinese New Year so much more than Western New Year.
HIM: I know.
ME: *has revelation about self*
In case the name “Mostly Irish” wasn’t obvious enough, I am not Chinese. I am not remotely Asian. I am, well, mostly Irish (with some English and French Canadian thrown in, for added flavor). I’m about as Traditionally Western as it gets (not the Wild West, mind you). But as I got older, I found myself endlessly fascinated by and drawn to Eastern Culture. I have no idea why this is. I didn’t grow up knowing many Asian families (or, well, any). There was only one Asian girl in my entire high school. My freshman/sophomore year college roommate was Laotian. That was about the extent of my practical life experience with Eastern Culture.
And I am not saying I am anywhere near experienced now. I’m kind of like…a first grader. Or hell, let’s call me a second grader so I can be on par with Patoot. Anyway, what I’m saying is: I’m learning. And I’m excited to be learning. But I don’t know much more than Patoot does. For Christmas, I got her the book “The Year of the Dog” by Grace Lin-partially because Patoot was born in the Year of the Dog, and partially because I want to open a window into more cultures for her. The Three Wise Men brought Patoot and the Munchkin a picture book about the Lunar New Year (also by Grace Lin), too. And as we read these books together, I learn as they learn.
I also find myself reading articles about the coming Lunar Year-its promises and its portents. And I find I prefer this way of looking ahead to the traditional “resolution making” of Western New Year. It’s like…I have this map in front of me, and how I choose to take advantage of what’s to come is on me. Unlike the Western New Year, where all you get is a blank page and a hangover.
I also love the ceremonies. The pageantry. And the family-friendly aspect of it all. Western New Year’s is NOT a family holiday. Boston does host First Night, to be fair-an all-inclusive outdoor festival of ice sculptures and street musicians. But it just doesn’t have the same level of time-honored tradition. Like, I KNOW it was an event made up specifically so parents who can't go out on New Year’s Eve had something to do with their kids. But the Lunar New Year has always been all-inclusive. Always all about family.
Does it make me a poser to adopt this tradition that I have no cultural right to? That I probably only half-celebrate and most likely understand even less? I’m not sure. But I hope not, because I honestly do love it. And I find it interesting that it’s a tradition I came to embrace on my own, without the benefit of growing up in it. So I will check my Chinese Astrology (as a Wood Tiger, the Year of the Wood Horse is supposed to be a good one for me-bonus!). I will mark Chinatown’s Lion Dance Parade on my calendar. I even snipped off a little of my hair last night before bed, since we read in “Year of the Dog” that’s it’s tradition to get a haircut before the New Year. And I will wish you all: Gong Xi Fa Cai!
Are there any traditions, celebrations, or holidays from a culture other than the one you were raised in that you find yourself drawn to?