As we usher in the lunar year of the Golden Pig, our AsiaOne team gets reflective amidst the festivities, and attempts to delve deeper and find out what the lunar new year means.
AsiaOne
Feb 16, 2007

Something worrying is happening in my family circle.

My nieces and nephews have not been scouring the malls to buy new clothes for the Chinese New Year and they are not planning to have haircuts or perms too.

"Young people do not perm their hair these days, uncle! You are living in the past!" This one from my sassy 15-year-old niece.

The kids also say the clothes they have are "comfy" and they are happy using them as new year attire.

Passing the new year in old clothes? Their grandfather would turn in his grave if he knew.

New shoes? My nephew says he loves his present Nike and it feels comfortable since it has been "seasoned" with constant use.

Come new year's eve, they will be out of their homes at about 10 pm in old clothes and shoes after their reunion dinners and will spend the night at St James Power Station partying into the small hours.

The next day, as usual, they will awake around noon and probably hang around for the traditional ang pows their parents will hand them. Then they will be gone again to "hang out" with friends.

My family is not alone in witnessing this traditional trappings of the new year.

The only ones the kids accept are the reunion dinners and the ang pows. Food and money. Are you surprised?

But truth be told, young parents - those in their 30s and early 40s - also don't seem to be rigid about making their children observe many of the shift of values during this auspicious period. Other families also say young Singaporeans no longer want to observe all the age-old traditions that Chinese parents used to impose on their kids years and years ago.

These younger parents say the times have changed and, anyway, their kids are not about to heed them when it comes to observing old traditions.

Ah well...

I remember how my mother trooped all her four children into shoe and tailor shops as the first preparation for the Chinese New Year.

She believed that to start the year afresh, everything must be new - haircut, clothes, shoes socks and even underwear.

On new year's eve, we got that rare chance to stay up late, the later the better. So it was such a thrill for us to play with sparklers and even fire crackers (allowed in those days) until 2 am or 3 am.

The belief was that the longer we were awake, the longer our parents would live.

The irony is that my mother died at age 30 when I was just seven years old. So much for staying up late.

On new year's day, father would gather us around him and say: "Today, you all must forgive one another for any wrong. Forgive your friends too. Start the new year without grudges. Don't scold anyone. Don't use swear words. Don't shout."

We kids passed the day in a serene and benevolent mood.

My mother shunned the broom - a symbol of domestic servitude - and never swept the floor of our home for the 15 days of the new year.

It was only after Chap Goh Meh that she cleaned house again. There was also no slaving in th kitchen. That is why one of the traditional Chinese dishes - especially that of Malaysian Chinese - is that pot of xian cai ya tang.

She cooked a huge pot of this delicious duck and salted vegetable soup which we consumed over quite a few days.

The soup, as well as other dishes such as roasted meats, kept well and were our staple for the festive period.

On new year's day, decked out in everything new, we faced our parents and clasped our hands to say "kiong hee, kiong hee" to them.

This Hokkien greeting means "congratulations". I guess this was called for since the family had survived another year.

Today, the kids just say with a casual wave of the hand: "Happy New Year mum and dad! Where's our ang pow?"

So sweet they are!

And yes, there was yet another new year tradition that has survived until today - gambling.

It was the only day in the year that we kids were allowed to play cards with money as stakes.

We would play for hours with some players ending in tears after all their ang pow collection wagered away.

We hung around at home most of the first day of the new year as our parents wanted us to be a united family to receive relatives and friends who would use that day for visits.

On the second day, it was the turn for my parents and us to visit relatives and friends.

This has always struck me as odd.

If the first day is for people to stay home to receive guests, then how about those who are out of their homes on their rounds of visits?

What if their friends call on them and find them not home?

Anyway, the kids of those days always welcomed the new year with excitement and joy. To them it was really the grandest event ever.

Kids today, not all perhaps, treat this day like any other.

Sigh.

Gong Xi Fa Cai to all!