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China's Spring Festival is marked by what is often described as the world's largest human migration. This shows the importance we assign to the reunion with our loved ones during this festival. Also known as Chinese New Year, the festival has been celebrated for more than 4,000 years. As the poem goes, "The sound of firecrackers is the beginning of a new year, the spring breeze sends warmth into the toso." This is a time for all of us to welcome the new and bid a fond farewell to the old.
When I was a child, my mother was always busy on New Year's Eve. She would do all the rituals from the morning, such as cleaning the house and hanging new couplets and “Fu” characters on the door. She would make me sleep during the day to prepare for the New Year's countdown at night.
On the evening of New Year's Eve, the whole family would sit together for a reunion dinner and relish in the joys of family life. In the north of China, dumplings are an essential part of the New Year's Eve dinner, signifying the change of years. In the south, spring rolls and rice cakes are a must for New Year's Eve dinner, as they symbolise achieving greater things in the coming year.
One of the most important Chinese New Year traditions is to stay up late after the dinner. Some adults play cards and chat, others accompany children to set off fireworks. I have such vivid childhood memories of setting off fireworks for Chinese New Year. I would not go to bed until the clock struck 12 midnight, which echoed Su Shi's poem in which he wrote, "Children are reluctant to go to sleep and long for staying up late at night."
Nowadays, I am not sure how many children get to experience firecrackers for this celebration. But if you come to Huili nursery, you will see handmade firecrackers hanging in the door of each classroom. Some are made from paper, others from clay. Each has its unique characteristics and adds a splash of festive red to our learning environment.
In addition to staying up late, paying New Year's greetings and sharing blessings with loved ones are also important traditions. Although it is more common nowadays to send a text message or make a phone call, the wishes remain sincere as ever.
The New Year wishing tree in our nursery's corridor is filled with children's wishes. Some wished to grow taller. Some wished for an early end to the pandemic so that they could visit loved ones in other provinces. Others drew lots of gifts that they wished to give to their friends overseas.
The pictures and words created by children were not perfect, but they represented their expectations and pure love. Every day, children stop to look at the wishing tree when they come to the nursery. Then they walk into the classroom with a contented smile.
The last climax of the Chinese New Year is celebrating Lantern Festival. The most representative activities of this festival are marveling at the warm glow of red lanterns, guessing lantern riddles and eating tangyuan. On the night of the Lantern Festival, bright and beautiful lanterns of all sizes are hung all over the streets. The whole family can go out to enjoy lanterns and children happily play with their favourite rabbit lanterns.
One night's east wind adorns a thousand trees with flowers,
And blows down stars in showers.
Fine steeds and carved cabs spread fragrance en route;
Music vibrates from the flute;
The moon sheds its full light,
While fish and dragon lanterns dance all night.
This famous poem by Xin Qiji depicts the magnificent lantern viewing scene that is so emblematic of this festival. Although there were no dazzling lanterns in the nursery, the children and teachers made dumplings, tangyuan and guessed lantern riddles to experience these timeless traditions. We were proud to see how engaged our pupils were as they wrapped dumplings. They shared tips with each other and completed one challenge after another with their peers’ encouragement. We trust that they were imbued with a sense of pride as they had the opportunity to eat the food that they made.
A new round of four seasons will come and people's lives will enter a new journey. I feel confident that this Chinese New Year will be an opportunity for all of us to embrace a new start as we welcome a year of peace and prosperity.
