Si Nian (Four Years)

Sean, Beatrice, Millie & Eliza

Beijing Capital Airport -Tuesday, February 7, 2006

(In transit from O'hare to Qingdao)

This week we celebrated the forth year since we arrived in China. Four years ago our girlies were: a gapped-tooth six and a half-year-old, a freshly-turned-four middle, and a breastfeeding baby of nine months. We were wide eyed with culture shock, whilst exhausted by jet-lag, and felt like we stuck out like sore thumbs... we did!

Our entry into the Middle Kingdom was lauded by explosions of fireworks, blaring car alarms, and frighting firecrackers. We had no idea our move date corresponded almost directly with The Chinese New Year... the culmination of the entire nation's efforts to create one bang up holiday. Our planning was certainly poor. We clearly had much to learn about Chinese culture!

The upside is, The Chinese New Year (which follows the lunar calendar) always falls right around the anniversary date of our move...Thus we annually commemorate our move with the mother of all holidays and preparations hosted by the most populous nation on the planet.

Fireworks, Rituals, and the Frantic Festive Rush of the Lunar New Year preparations...

• Running to buy the new clothes for for the whole family for the yearly celebration.
• Scurrying to clean houses to a spit-polished shine. (Daughters-in-law carry a special burden to clean not their own home, but also their husband's parents' home, unless of course they already share the same roof! And, in this culture which has already had a full generation of one-child families, she might find herself @ her own parent's home scrubbing a year's worth of wok splattered peanut oil off the kitchen wall and coaxing dust bunnies out from under hard mattressed beds).
• People take pride in hanging up with great care new couplets flanking each side of their entrance or Fu banners (extra lucky if you install the character for luck upside down) on their doors.
• Stores and shops, packed beyond what a Western mind finds imaginable, with people stalking up on Coke, red wine, Tsingtao beer, pumpkin seeds, pistachios, and peanuts for the days following the New Year when friends come to call, grab a handful of nuts to shell on your coffee table, and wish your household a happy and prosperous year of the tiger.
• A healthy supply of fireworks are purchased for Xiao Nian (little Chinese New Year... one week before the actual Chinese New Year), for Chinese New Year, and for Lantern Festival 15 days later when glutenous rice balls, filled with a mysterious array of fillings are eaten, and the remaining loot of the you-could-blow-your-hand-off-with-those fireworks are blown high into the soon smoke filled skies!