SU students ring in Chinese New Year with festival, small celebrations
Photos by Surya Vaidy, Photo Illustration by Meghan Hendricks
In Chloe Ng’s family, children and young adults who are unmarried are gifted money in red envelopes, which are called lai shi in Cantonese. The money passed on from the elders is meant to bring luck to the younger generations.
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Feb. 1 welcomed the Year of the Tiger, which is associated with power, vitality and protection. For many Syracuse University students who celebrate, this Lunar New Year provided strength and cause for celebration during the ongoing pandemic.
Alongside newfound hope, the Lunar New Year is a means of remaining connected to culture and home life for many. Senior Christine Wu recalled how she celebrates with her family.
“At home, we have a little bit of a ceremony before we have a family dinner,” Wu said. “We would honor our ancestors in some way. We would (offer) wine, incense and fake cash.”
The Lunar New Year is celebrated across East Asian, Southeast Asian and Chinese communities worldwide, with approximately 1.5 billion people observing the holiday. Traditions differ based on familial interpretations and vary regionally. Wu said that hair is either cleaned before or after — not on — New Year’s Day to prevent good fortune from washing away. Red, worn and used in decor, is attributed to good luck.
“We have certain checklists. You have to wash your hair before New Year’s or you have to wear red,” said Wu.
In the past, Wu has celebrated by making handmade dumplings with a roommate who also celebrated Lunar New Year. This year she had planned to go back home to Brooklyn, but she had to cancel her plans due to academic obligations that arose at the start of the semester.
Wu said that the spirit of the holiday feels difficult to maintain without her family. However, the celebration is still important to her.
“I take (this) New Year’s a little more serious than other years because I am graduating this year, so it symbolizes change and a new journey,” said Wu.
Similar to Wu, junior Chloe Ng is remembering the New Year with her family while she stays on campus. Chloe said her favorite aspect of the celebrations was the monetary incentive she received in return for wishing elders good fortune. Typically children and young adults who are unmarried in her family are gifted money in red envelopes, called lai shi in Cantonese, Chloe said. The money passed on from the elders is meant to bring luck to the younger generations.
“Family means a lot to me,” Chloe said. “Being able to see them for this one event is always meaningful to me.”
But due to COVID-19, Chloe has adjusted to virtually observe her family’s yearly feast.
“They’ll just FaceTime me whenever they’re eating dinner,” Chloe said.
Even without family, students have celebrated the new year with the Asian American community at SU. Junior Erica Ng will be spending her Lunar New Year with friends from Sigma Psi Zeta.
“I tend to modify my Chinese New Year celebrations when I’m away at college because of costs and I don’t have any relatives or family nearby,” Erica said. “I plan to have a small dinner with my sorority sisters who also celebrate the New Year.”
On Jan. 28, a few days before the Lunar New Year, SU’s Chinese Students and Scholars Association held a Chinese New Year Festival. The event was held in Goldstein Auditorium. Attendees were treated to an evening of performances, featuring both traditional and modern singing and dancing, Erica said.
Sophomore Myra Wong, who does not observe Lunar New Year but worked during CSSA’s event as a technical crew member for events and technical services, recalled details from the event.
“Between each performance, they gave out prizes and played different games,” Wong said. “They gave out posters, goodie bags and gave everyone red envelopes with a gold plastic coin.”
Wong’s supervisor mentioned the event sells out nearly every year, and this year’s festival had around 450 students, Wong said.
Erica also attended the festival. She said all the performances were engaging and enjoyed the opening live band and K-pop inspired acts, and the prize giveaways during the festival’s breaks were a clever addition to involve the audience.
“I loved the decorations and the way the show was presented. There were traditional Chinese and English translations,” Erica said. “It did make me feel more excited for the Chinese New Year.”
Wong’s impressions of CSSA’s festival mirrored Erica’s sentiments. The show felt like the Oscars in terms of the formal outfits worn by presenters, and it included comedy skits between song and dance performance sets, Wong said.
“Everyone was very happy to celebrate,” Wong said. “It was clear that the celebration was important to the people going.”
Published on February 2, 2022 at 9:20 pm
