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Gung Hay Fat Choy, Happy Chinese New Year…May Prosperity Be With You.
Chinese New Year is just a couple of days away; this year is February 7, 2008. It is the year of the Rat, the Rat is the first sign of the zodiac, as Rat people are creative problem solver, imaginative, hyperactive worker respected for its resourcefulness; intuitive with ability in acquiring and holding on to things it values. If you are curious about other animals, and see what your birth animal sign will bring in 2008, you can read Chinese animal predictions 2008 by Michael Hanna, a Feng Shui master.
According to Michael, Chinese astrology is not like western astrology. The whole idea of it is to be informed of what may come and how you can apply cures and enhancers to avoid potential problems and having the information in advance, you can avoid many of the problems that are forecasted. The information will also assist you to be prepared and to make informed decisions that may affect your wellbeing and endeavors. It is important that you know when and how to avoid the bad influences during the year… you will come across websites or other Practitioners who will predict all sorts of doom and gloom for a certain animal in any year, please take this with a pinch of salt and enjoy a great 2008.
I think what I miss most during this time of the year is Chinatown New York, when I lived there, I used to go see the parade, following them from store to store, firecrackers made lots of noise but it was loads of fun. I found some photos of Chinese New Year Parade 2006 in Chinatown New York taken by Emin New York that brought back many of my childhood memories growing up in NYC.
Photo by Waterdragonfly
I love Christmas lights display, when I first saw Christmas trees inside people’s home; it was somewhat shocking to me. I came to the US during this time of the year, December 8th to be exacted, and our sponsor, the Chinese Christian Church came to pick us up at JFK Airport, took us in the church van and drove us through the lighted streets in Brooklyn, as I watched in amazement that people actually placed lighted trees inside their home, I thought this was the normal practice, never realized at the time that it was just during Christmas season. For someone who came from a tropical forest Laos, I adjusted well to my new home of the concrete jungle of NYC.
Christmas season marked a new beginning for our family; I knew how much my mom loved Christmas lights. It was during this time, last year that she wanted to go outside to see the Christmas lights display in her neighborhood, but it was too cold and she was too ill to be able to sit in a moving vehicle. Even though she didn’t get to see the Christmas lights, but she knew how beautiful the night scenery was during this time of the year because we drove around in the past just to see the Christmas lights display.
As for those that loss their loved ones, any holiday season can be depressing, this I know too well. I was glad to receive a letter from the Funeral Home that served our family, I was pleased with them during the time of my mom’s funeral service as they clearly respected our tradition, but this is something beyond what we were expecting, the letter read:
“As this most special time of the year approaches, we have been thinking about you and your family and the other families we have served this year during the loss of loved ones. You are in our thoughts and prayers, because we know the holiday season can be a lonely time during your period of bereavement. To let you know that we care and understand, we have erected a Christmas tree at each of our funeral homes as a memorial to the loved ones who have left their families this year.”
My dad, sisters, and I went by to see the Christmas tree today; this was the first time I’ve been back since I picked up my mom’s ashes back in January. A lady that works there greeted us; she remembered our family.
This was the last day for the families to pick up the ornaments of their loss loved ones, surprisingly the Christmas tree still looked full with hand-painted ornaments with names on them, and there was one for my mom for us to take home. I think most people are busy during this time of the year, but surely the memory of their loss loved ones are still in their heart.
I don’t normally give gifts to my sisters, but this year I purchased additional hand painted ornaments with my mom’s name on one side, and in back have the year 2007 for my sisters. As for those that loss their loved ones, no matter how long time has passed, we still miss them dearly.
As most people celebrate Christmas at this time of the year, there are others that celebrate Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Ramadan, Diwali, and New Year, therefore to be politically correct, I should say, “Happy Holidays.”
I love Christmas cards, as some might call it Holiday greeting cards, I often wonder how people pick out their Christmas cards. Do you pick something that will bring a smile or a laugh to the people you send them to? As for me personally, I only send out a few Holiday cards each year as some of my friends moved and I find that it’s getting harder to keep in touch; sending out few cards also means receiving very few cards, but luckily we receive many Holiday greeting cards at work, these are some of my favorite cards that we received.
- Thai Pimai Song
One of my favorite Christmas cartoons or movies is A Charlie Brown Christmas, which I’ve watched every years, this is a powerful tale of Charlie Brown’s quest for the true meaning of Christmas amid the garish trappings of a commercialized holiday. This show poses a question of, “Does anybody know the meaning of Christmas?”
A Charlie Brown Christmas - 1 of 3
A Charlie Brown Christmas - 2 of 3
A Charlie Brown Christmas - 3 of 3
My favorite Christmas songs…
- We Wish You a Merry Christmas
- Winter Wonderland
- O Holy Night
- Little Drummer Boy
- Go Tell It on the Mountain
- Silent Night
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