New Year - time for family togetherness

It's the second day of Chinese New Year! Happy Chinese New Year everyone! Why is this festival called Chinese New Year, when it's not limited to the Chinese community around the world? Vietnamese celebrate this festival too! They call it Tet. It is based on the Lunar calendar, so technically, it should be called Lunar New Year, not Chinese New Year.

Then the Chinese in China call it Spring Festival or 春节 because this is the time they welcome Spring, even though most times it is still winter and sometimes snowing in some parts of the country.

Regardless of what you call it, it's a time for the family to get together. On the eve of the Lunar New Year, the whole family gathers together from wherever they are living in the world. Special food is served, each dish symbolising a good wish for the new year. It is probably the one time of the year when the whole family gets to see each other and catch up with what has happened over the past year. For some, it is the first time meeting a new member of the family, whether by marriage or birth. In short, it is a heart-warming time for everyone.

In every culture, there seems to be at least one festival that brings the whole family together. In western countries, it is Christmas. For the Chinese and Vietnamese, it is the Lunar New Year. For those from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia, it is the Buddhist New Year. We may all be culturally different, but one thing remains the same for the entire human race: family togetherness.

Whether you are celebrating the Lunar New Year or just starting another week, here's wishing you and your family a time of love and togetherness!

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