Skip to main content

Chinese New Year Traditions are Fading

By

By Emily Chew
           
Days before the Lunar year, every household is busy giving its house a thorough makeover. People also give their fences and walls new paint, hoping to sweep away all the unfortunate luck that may have been in the family to make way for incoming good luck. During the eve of the Lunar New Year, the reunion dinner draws all the family members together. The reunion dinner, although it is not a ceremony, is more of a promise that the family will again unite despite busy schedules from work and studies.
            Nowadays, many younger generations do not prioritize the reunion dinner anymore. Some do not return from studying or working abroad; some do not put effort into visiting their grandparents and parents in their hometown. In the past, it is a tradition to visit the hometown what else nowadays it is no longer necessary. For the majority of Gen-Y, they tend to prioritize their friends and colleagues over their family members and relatives. Most of the people focus on their devices rather than spending the time to communicate with their family members. Younger generations feel less attached to their family members and do not value family gatherings during the Chinese New Year.
            While westernization is not entirely to blame, the Chinese believe that it plays a part in the fading of traditional Chinese traditions. The younger generations have a broader exposure to western culture through media and the accessibility to information. Many younger generations are also more likely to adopt western cultures, altering their view on the importance of traditional Chinese values and traditions. Young adults do not contribute much to the festive cheer a lot anymore, but they will be busy avoiding eye contact from the family relatives, uncles and aunties. They tend to give loads of advice and lectures on studying habits, relationship skills, and manners, etc. Thus, many teenagers do not enjoy visiting their family relatives as they don’t value the importance of communication between the generations' ties.
            The festival is to bond family ties to encourage reunions and gatherings. If you did not make an effort to maintain a close relationship with your children, parents, and friends, do not expect them to warm up to you suddenly. No matter how busy you are, always remember that family bonding should not only occur during special occasions. It would be best if you stayed up to date with your grandparents’ and family’s lives. The family will never turn their backs on their members, and your family members are the only people who genuinely care for you in any circumstances.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DINGBAT DALAT STUDENT SPENDS PRECIOUS TIME CONJURING UP SELF-REFERENTIAL SENIOR SCRIBBLE RATHER THAN GATHERING LEGITIMATE WORK

By Anonymous
Yusoof Monawvil PENANG, MA - As the deadline drew near and the stars aligned in the night sky above the majestic waters of the Strait of Malacca, one particular Dalat student—Yusoof Monawvil (12), despite a plethora of school events to select and report on—opted instead to spend a remarkably well-wasted 24 minutes staring at a blank Google Docs page, fruitlessly drawing up and shooting down brainstormed ideas.  In a moment of sheer and undeniable epiphany, Monawvil deemed it only fitting to self-referentially satirize his own ingrained incompetence and dingbattery. Commenting on the flash of insight, Monawvil quoted himself, saying: “It all just kinda made sense. I went on DISCourse to look at the little rubric thing Ms. Grad and Mr. Hieber posted, and I checked if I was following all of the guidelines... And I technically am/was; [N]ot like there’s any specific direktive [sic] prohibiting self-quoting.”  In a turn of events, Monawvil did come to find his self-quoting en...
6 comments
Read more

"Spikeball, Swimming, and Sickness: The Remnants of Senior Sneak" by Ee Rynn Ong

By
“Guys, I think we’re here,” said Jonathan Ooi (12) as he peeked out of the lorry to catch the first glimpse of our Senior Sneak location. This year’s Senior Sneak was held in Nomad Adventure, Gopeng, and the organizers planned many activities for the Class of 2026, ranging from traditional games like congkak and batu seremban to adrenaline-pumping ropes courses and whitewater rafting. These scheduled activities proved to be some of the best highlights of the trip, but top of that, the seniors were also given some daily free time to chat, explore, and relax. Josh Stevens (12) had come prepared for this with two spikeball nets, which immediately attracted attention from people eager to spend time in the outdoor sun. The next five days saw spikeball veterans and newcomers alike, spending their precious one and a half hours daily around the unassuming circular net, smashing the yellow ball in hopes of a victory.  Caleb Evans (12) was one of the newbies to spikeball, learning how the g...
Post a Comment
Read more

“I Miss Her” by Nikhil Pillay

By
While most people had a fun week for mid-semester break, whether it was spent with family, or with friends on impact trips, no one had a more emotionally confusing week than Judson Kenneth Robert Nosker (12).  In the light of recent events, Judson, despite all odds, had gotten in a relationship with one of his classmates, and as the break started, he had started to spend a lot of time with her. While with her, he started to experience a new level of joy and completeness that he had never felt before. In the words of Judson Nosker, “The first half of the break was good, but the rest of it was horrible.”  The reason for such a quote and the roller coaster of emotion was because half way through the break, disaster had struck. Judson’s girlfriend had gone on a trip with her family to Thailand, leaving Judson all alone. For the rest of the week, Judson was in a state of longing for her presence.  His friends have reported numerous occasions when Judson would be sitting with t...
Post a Comment
Read more