kung hei fat choi!

pengeng tikoy! hehehe...

today, our chinese brothers are celebrating their Chinese New Year. for them it is the most important traditional chinese holidays. the festival traditionally begins on the first day of the first lunar month and ends with Lantern Festival fourteen days later.

the celebration starts with traditional Dragon Dance/Lion Dance and followed by fireworks. families are gathered for the feast and thanksgiving. this is also the right time to visit relatives for a reunion.

year of the rat

2008 is the "Year of the Rat". springsgretingcards.com said, "a Rat Year is a time of hard work, activity, and renewal. this is a good year to begin a new job, get married, launch a product or make a fresh start. ventures begun now may not yield fast returns, but opportunities will come for people who are well prepared and resourceful. the best way for you to succeed is to be patient, let things develop slowly, and make the most of every opening you can find".

preparations

chinese new year is filled with preparations that pertain to finding good fortune. house decorations include red banners or couplets with new year wishes and symbols of good fortune in gold. candies and rounded fruits represent togetherness, sweetness, longevity, children, and prosperity. new clothes worn should be in orange and red, which signify happiness and prosperity.

don't forget the tikoy! tikoy is a chinese new year pudding that symbolizes a rich, sweet life, stickiness, close family ties, and the round shape signifies family reunion.

chinese calendar

if you are wondering why the chinese new year has no fixed date, it's because it is based on solar and lunar movements that represent time based on different days in different years on the chinese calendar. usually, the chinese new year is commemorated either in january or february.

trivia: did you know that the commonly used greeting, "Kung Hei Fat Choi!", is not synonymous to "Happy New Year!"? instead, its meaning translates to "Congratulations and be prosperous!".

that's why my wish for this year of the rat, is to have a prosperous business and investments, good health, more service to God and my neighbors and a wonderful and loving family. chow!