My Favourite CNY Tradition

I opened the door and was greeted with a familiar fragrance – the aroma of herbal soup tinged with the sharp tang of mala oil. The house was alive with the sounds of cooking:  the sizzling of oil in a frying pan, the crackling of fire at the stove, and a metallic clanking as the ladle moved around the sides of the pot. I took off my school shoes and ran inside the house, eager to kick start the first day of Chinese New Year celebrations.

As a resident of the ACS(I) boarding school, I spend much of the after-school hours by myself. Of course, I enjoy the thrill that comes with living alone, and the refreshing independence I gain. But at the end of each week, I would always look forward to seeing my parents again. After all, nothing can beat the warmth of familial love, and the comfort of one’s home.

Hence, Chinese New Year marks a joyous occasion of reunion for me and my family, celebrated over a colorful platter of unique, mouth-watering dishes. Of course, we have the typical staple foods – leek dumplings carefully shaped to resemble that of the yuan bao, a symbol of prosperity in Chinese culture, and the nian gao, pastries made of glutinous rice which are enjoyed by both young and old.

Who could forget about the yusheng, the most iconic dish for Chinese New Year? A Singaporean classic, this dish has become a must-have for every Chinese New Year celebration. After all, what is a family reunion without a mess of carrot strips, peanut bits and the ever so iconic phrase ‘Huat-ah!’?

We always made our yusheng ourselves, each of us contributing to a part of the final product. I remember, just last week, I painstakingly sliced a whole cucumber into thin sheets, and added it to a mixture of honey and peanut bits.

This year, I got the honor of escorting the diva to its well-deserved spotlight. As I laid the yusheng on the dinner table, I felt a sense of pride, like an artist looking upon her masterpiece, her magnum opus. The intricate patterns made by the cucumber slices, glazed by a sheet of honey, topped by dashes of carrot strips and peanut bits.  Each stroke, each line, was infused with a searing passion. To some, it may seem like a silly, chaotic mess. But to me, this means everything.

In Chinese New Year, the word ‘prosperity’ is often mentioned, be it on the designs of angpaos, the wishes we make, and the blessings we exchange. We usually link ‘prosperity’ to materialism. Have we ever stopped to consider what ‘prosperity’ truly entails?  Reunion, love, and prosperity -do they not go hand in hand? As I took each bite from the nian gao, or dipped a dumpling into the soy sauce, I felt that I was the wealthiest person in the world.

After all, what’s more precious than the joys of reunion, and the bonds we share with our families?

Xiong Shiyu

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