It was cold and windy outside, drops of rain stuck to the window. The clouds looked like little wisps in the sky. Excitement shot through my body, I couldn’t wait! A big plate of mochi sat on the table dusted with matcha and filled with red bean. I couldn’t wait to eat them. They were for chinese New year. Chinese new year is one of my family traditions. Through my traditions I have learned about my culture.
Every year my family celebrates Chinese New Year. A couple years ago I wondered why I celebrate Chinese New Year and why it was so important. But my family helped me, I learned that it was one of my family traditions and it was also part of my culture. I used to feel like I was different and people would ask my questions and ask why do you celebrate it and how does that have to do with your culture? But I realized that a lot of people also celebrate this holiday. Chinese New Year is an asian festival that is about celebrating the beginning of a new year on the chinese calendar. It can also be called the Spring Festival or the Lunar New year. That year I started to learn more about my culture. I realized that Chinese New Year was more than just a holiday, it was a big part of my culture and my identity. Now when we celebrate Chinese New Year we have special decorations with red and gold designs and lots of food such as chow mein, mochi and siopao.
During December my family hangs a parol. I remember stepping on the porch of my cousins house, as I walked closer to the door I could see bright star shaped lanterns tied to the roof and the porch. The whole roof was covered with stars covered in colored cellophane. The tassels on the bottoms of the stars made rustling noises, they were big parols with lots of colors. A parol is a christmas lantern from the philippines. It is made of bamboo and cellophane and is hung outside houses for good luck. It is an expression of shared faith and hope. It also symbolizes the triumph of light over darkness and goodwill during Christmas season.I used to think that they were just decoration, but they are for good luck and getting rid of bad spirits. I used to think it was embarrassing to hang them but I realized they had a meaning. I learned that you should not be embarrassed of your culture.
On Christmas I go to my aunt’s house to celebrate. Every Christmas all of my cousins go to my aunt’s house to open presents and eat filipino food. One of the traditions my family does on Christmas is getting red envelopes. A red envelope is a tradition that originated in china and is a part of many asian cultures. They are envelopes filled with money and have symbols and writing on the front to represent good luck and to ward off bad spirits. They are given on holidays and other special occasions. I remember getting lots of red envelopes from my aunties and uncles and saving up all the money to buy something. I hope that this family tradition continues so that more people in my family can experience this. I learned that you can make good memories and find out new things about your culture by celebrating family traditions.
By celebrating these traditions and writing this essay about them, I have realized that my family traditions are important and make me different. When you are celebrating your family traditions, your family can help you learn more about your culture.