Hi, all. This week’s Saturday is Chinese New Year, February 10, 2024. It is the time of the year when people gather together with their families and celebrate the start of the new spring. I didn’t understand why my family and any other Chinese family were celebrating another day for New Year. Because we also celebrate the very first day of January. But my mom told me, “Chinese New Year is different, it goes by the Lunar Calendar”.

The Tale

Hearing the story for the first time in my childhood about the Nian was sitting around the round table with my uncles and nephews eating sunflower seeds and candies while listening to the story:

Once Upon a time, there was a monster called “Nian”(Year) in ancient China. It had a green face, fangs, sharp horns, sharp claws, and was extremely ferocious. “Nian” lives deep in the mountains all year round, and only goes down to the mountains every New Year’s Eve to devour livestock and harm people. Therefore, every New Year’s Eve, people in every household leave home to avoid the harm of the Nian beast, which is known as “to pass the ‘Year'”.

One New Year’s Eve, when people were helping the elderly and the young to take refuge in the mountains, an old beggar from outside the village came with them. Some people sealed their windows and locked their doors, some packed their bags, and there was rush and panic everywhere. No one cared about the begging old man. Only an old woman from the east of the village made dumplings for the old man to eat and advised him to go up the mountain quickly to avoid the Nian beast. To repay the old woman’s kindness, the old man told her that Nian was most afraid of the color red, fire, and explosions. He asked her to wear red clothes, put red paper on the door, light red candles, and burn bamboo in the courtyard to make explosions.

At midnight, the Nian beast broke into the village. Finding that the village was brightly lit, its eyes were forced to close by the dazzling red color, and it heard the loud sound of firecrackers coming from someone’s house, so it ran away tremblingly. From then on, people knew how to drive away the Nian. Every New Year’s Eve, every family posted red couplets and set off firecrackers; every household lit candles and kept alert for the beast. Early in the morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year, people also visit relatives and friends to say hello and congratulate each other for surviving the ravages of the Nian beast.

“Later, this custom spread more and more widely and became the most solemn traditional festival among Chinese people.” said my Uncle.

So this explains the reason why on the day of the Chinese New Year, my mom would tell me to wear something red because it means luck. We also put up red couplets on both sides of our door to bring prosperity and peace for the upcoming year. Then light up firecrackers to liven up the atmosphere.

Here are my dad’s for this Dragon Year:

Uniqueness

I find uniqueness in Chinese New Year because of its tale. The Nian represents the suffering people might encounter throughout the year. Wearing signs of red, lighting up firecrackers, and hanging couplets will bring hope of fortune against the suffering. I also find uniqueness when it is like Christmas. We gather around with family, we eat, and we open gifts. But not in the form of wrapping paper, in the form of a red envelope. I find uniqueness in the connections of compatriots who are far away from home. They study here and find ways to gather around to celebrate, so they find a sense of home.