WEE YAN LING Class: 4/3B
Chinese New Year is a highly anticipated festive occasion that the Chinese celebrate. Even before Chinese New Year, shops will play Chinese New Year songs and sell Chinese New Year goods such as the red packet envelopes, banners with wishes to hang on the walls and other decorations. Did you know that Chinese New Year is not all about receiving red packets? Through Chinese New Year, we also get to reunite with our family, relatives and friends and catch up on the good old times. During Chinese New Year, there are several practices that teach us good values.
Firstly, we start off with the practice of spring cleaning before Chinese New Year. It is extremely important as we welcome the New Year with a fresh start. Sweeping the floor before Chinese New Year is said to ward off all the bad luck in the house before Chinese New Year arrives. People would throw away unwanted things such as furniture, old shoes and newspapers just to name a few. Through spring cleaning, I learnt that we need to be responsible of our own surroundings and learn to be patient. If we do not already have these two values, spring cleaning is a good way to cultivate them. Through spring cleaning, we are responsible to clear the mess and rubbish at home and would put in effort to lend a helping hand to our parents who may be doing the household chores all alone. When we start doing spring cleaning, we will inevitably become more responsible as we also get to nurture the value of patience as we take the time to tidy up our room and house. Therefore, spring cleaning can make us more responsible and patient.
We also follow the practice of staying up as late as possible on the eve of Chinese New Year as it is said to e nsure longevity for our parents and lengthen their lives. Hence, children will endure the night by staying up as late as possible by fighting the urge to fall asleep. They would open their eyes as wide as they can to prevent their heavy eyelids from drooping downwards. Through this practice, they learn the importance of filial piety and sacrifice for their parents. Although such acts are simple, it really comes to show how much their children are willing to sacrifice for their loved ones like their parents. Values like perseverance, patience and filial piety are also nurtured, cultivated and displayed through this festive occasion
On Chinese New Year, house-visiting is a must. By giving oranges to our relatives or friends, we are wishing them an abundance of wealth as we receive a red packet in return! By going to our relative’s house to visit them, we learn to socialise and be more open towards them. As we gather together with our relatives, we get to bond together and catch up on the good old times as we chat heartily. When visiting our grandparents, we need to show our filial piety towards them and have our utmost respect for them as they are our elders. Through this, we will learn to be well-behaved and learn what filial piety is.
Chinese New Year is not all about receiving those red packets but also a time where values such as responsibility, perseverance, filial piety are learnt and displayed at the same time. Indeed, this precious festive occasion teaches us to be a better person as a whole and will definitely stay an important part of any generations to come.
Writers by the River 