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Visiting teacher helps mark Chinese New Year
(by Sue Hoffman - February 17, 2010)
Visiting teacher helps mark Chinese New Year
By SUE HOFFMAN
While Americans were getting ready to celebrate Valentine's Day on Feb. 14, the people of China were preparing for their New Year's celebration and 15-day spring festival, Yahui Xu told students last week at Timmons Elementary School in the Kenston School District.
"Before the spring festival, every family must thoroughly clean their entire home and wash everything inside the house," she said. "We shop a lot, buy new clothes and food, and get everything ready for the spring festival."
In a custom similar to the winter holidays in America, the spring festival and New Year's celebration include gifts and red money envelopes for the children. In China, those gifts are often tied to "all good wishes," including "good health, good grades," she said.
During the spring festival, people take vacation, she said. "It's family time, friends time. We eat, chat and play for 15 days."
Ms. Xu, a visiting teacher from China since 2008, teaches Chinese at Kenston Middle School and Kenston High School. She previously taught English at Song Nan Middle School, a public boarding school in Zhuzhou City in Hunan Province.
In last week's program, she presented a slide show about the Chinese New Year, including some photographs of her students decorating the classroom for the holiday.
The year 2010 is the "Year of the Tiger," she said.
In Chinese tradition, each year is marked by one of 12 animal signs in the Zodiac cycle. The tiger is a sign of bravery. Last year was the "Year of the Ox" and 2011 will be the "Year of the Rabbit."
"A very funny legend" about the New Year, she said, involves a beast who's "afraid of loud sounds and the color red." Years ago, the Chinese people celebrated the holiday with firecrackers and red clothes, and the beast stayed away. "Now, we have a happy new year every year," she said, and people continue with the same traditions.
"Firecrackers promote a change in energy, deliver new beginnings and provide protection from harm and bad luck." Besides red, yellow is an important color in the celebration, she said. "It's like the color gold," and will help usher in a rich new year, she said.
"We get lots of candies ready," she said, which will bring "sweet lives." The Chinese people also decorate their houses with flowers and place paper cuttings around the windows and poetic couplets in red and gold around their doors. People sing and dance to celebrate, she said.
Dumplings are a traditional new year's food, she said. "They foster togetherness and cooperation." The person who finds a coin inside the round dumpling is brought good luck, she said, and people eat carefully until the special dumpling is found. Fish is also popular. "People believe fish can make people clever and it's a popular dish. It also implies savings in the coming year."
Chinese people prepare an even number of dishes for the holiday, she said, because "good things come in pairs.
"Most of us are superstitious," she said. During the spring festival, there can be no usage of foul language, no talk of death and "all debts must be paid before the New Year. If they can't, they are supposed to give a reason."
As the moment of the new year approaches, there's no ball drop like the one at Times Square, but there is a countdown, she said.
The 15th day of the new year is marked by the lantern festival, she said. People hang red lanterns on trees and around the house and Ms. Xu's students hung them in the classroom.
To help students enjoy the New Year, Ms. Xu taught them a greeting: "Xin nian kuai le," meaning "Happy New Year," and "gong xi fa cai," or "wishing you good fortune."
Is the Chinese New Year her favorite time of the year? Timmons students asked Ms. Xu. "Yes," she said, as it's a great time to visit with friends and family and enjoy good food.
Do they have fortune cookies in China, students asked Ms. Xu. "We don't have fortune cookies, but we do have wonton soup -- for breakfast," she said.
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