Celebrating Chinese New Year - Introduction By Tricia Morrissey "Hiss!" and "Pop!" snap the firecrackers! "Boom!" says the drum to the Lion D Chinese New Year is here! Aunties and uncles have come from the Cousins visit from nearby Everyone wants to be together for the Long ago, when many families lived on farms, they called Chinese New Year the Spring F With clearer skies and warmer winds came anticipation for what lay Seeing spring on the way, they would get ready to plant fresh food, hope for a strong, new harvest, and welcome visits from old "Gung hey fat choy!" they would say to each other, "Congratulations and wealth!" or "Xin nian kuai le!", which means "New Year happiness!"Now the fifteen-day New Year celebration bursts with Have you seen the Lion Dance or heard the sharp, snapping firecrackers? Have you been given a bright red envelope or a piece of sweet, sugary melon? With a new year, there are so many things to hope Maybe new babies will join the family; maybe old grudges will be The new year is full of One New Year's eve, local bandits played a trick on a nearby Using bamboo and scraps of cloth, the bandits disguised themselves as a strange and scary Roaring and stomping, the wild beast made its way to The villagers were so frightened they ran to the forest and hid in the dark all With no one to stop them, the bandits ransacked the village and stole precious grain from the The next day, the tired villagers crept home to discover their belongings tossed about; overturned tables and broken bowls lay carelessly on the It was the work of the strange They called it the Nian ("Year") because it came on the eve of the new Working together, the villagers devised a fiery plan to scare the menacing Nian When the creature appeared again, some villagers were disguised as ferocious They leaped toward the strange beast, howling and banging pots and Other villagers waved torches and set off shrieking, smoking The bandits cried out in terror and fled from the The next year, and every year that followed, the villagers made lion costumes on New Year's eve, in case the fearsome Nian Though it never has, families still spend the New Year together, sending off the hardships of the old year with blazing lanterns, firecrackers and a Lion D The 15-Day Celebration of Chinese New YearThe first day of the Lunar New Year is "the welcoming of the gods of the heavens and "Many people abstain from meat on the first day of the new year because it is believed that this will ensure long and happy lives for On the second day, the Chinese pray to their ancestors as well as to all the They are extra kind to dogs and feed them well as it is believed that the second day is the birthday of all The third and fourth days are for the sons-in-laws to pay respect to their parents-in- The fifth day is called Po W On that day people stay home to welcome the God of W No one visits families and friends on the fifth day because it will bring both parties bad On the sixth to the 10th day, the Chinese visit their relatives and friends They also visit the temples to pray for good fortune and The seventh day of the New Year is the day for farmers to display their These farmers make a drink from seven types of vegetables to celebrate the The seventh day is also considered the birthday of human Noodles are eaten to promote longevity and raw fish for On the eighth day the Fujian people have another family reunion dinner, and at midnight they pray to Tian Gong, the God of H The ninth day is to make offerings to the Jade E The 10th through the 12th are days that friends and relatives should be invited for After so much rich food, on the 13th day you should have simple rice congee and mustard greens (choi sum) to cleanse the The 14th day should be for preparations to celebrate the Lantern Festival which is to be held on the 15th _article/html-day_html