January 13 2014, Monday
Chinese
New Year versus Christmas
With Christmas and New Year celebrations over, Chinese New year is around the corner. How would you choose between Chinese New Year and Christmas? Which one is your favourite?
Honestly speaking, I used to like
both when I was a little girl. The school I attended, a Catholic convent
school, would be all lit-up and we were treated to snacks on Christmas Eve. As
we were poor, we could not afford Christmas trees. My father would paste a big piece
of black paper on the wall and then use chalk to draw a Christmas tree on it decorating
it with cotton balls. I longed for Chinese New Year because only then would I
have new clothes and shoes. These were all good enough reasons to anticipate
the two festivals.
Now that I am old, I don’t feel
that much longing for Christmas. I am actually quite annoyed by all the
commercial activities generated in the name of Christmas. Aside from the church-goers,
most people have forgotten the meaning of Christmas – the humble birth of Jesus
Christ. But I must say I love listening to all the old Christmas songs.
It seems like I prefer Chinese
New Year more because it is a time for family re-union. My brothers and sisters
together with their children and grand children would be gathered in my apartment
to express their good wishes to mother – the most senior in the family. And she
would be laughing all the while though complaining that there is too much
noise.
