Celebrate Lunar New Year 2023 with captivating children's books featuring the Year of the Rabbit!
The Year of the Water Rabbit, 2023, marks the start of a new chapter in the Chinese lunisolar calendar. Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is traditionally celebrated for fifteen days. However, the joy and significance of this festive occasion can be prolonged beyond this period.
To celebrate Lunar New Year beyond the traditional fifteen-day period, you can extend festivities by adopting ongoing cultural customs, organizing community events, revisiting rituals, and engaging in travel and local experiences tied to the festival spirit.
One way to maintain the celebrations is by continuing social visits and gift exchanges. The tradition of visiting family, friends, and neighbors and exchanging well wishes, nuts, fruits, candies, or red envelopes can be prolonged to maintain connections and prosperity wishes.
Another way is by enjoying cultural performances and community events. Many cities with Asian communities host Lunar New Year festivals with live entertainment, lion dances, food fairs, or lantern festivals that sometimes last for weeks or occur repeatedly over several weeks, like those seen in Miami and Elk Grove, CA.
Maintaining ritual offerings and ancestor worship is another way to keep the spirits of Lunar New Year alive. Rituals of honoring ancestors and offering sacrifices to heaven and earth can be revisited or maintained periodically throughout the lunar year.
Exploring travel to cultural sites during and after the Lunar New Year season is another exciting way to experience the festive atmosphere. Visiting places like Hoi An in Vietnam with its lantern-lit streets, or Ho Chi Minh City with floral displays and community events, allows one to immerse in the festive spirit that often lingers beyond the official holiday period.
Celebrating smaller related festivals or community new year celebrations can offer additional cultural celebrations. For example, North American Indigenous Lunar New Year celebrations such as Hobiyee in Nisg̱a'a communities occur at different lunar calendar points and can provide additional cultural celebrations related to lunar cycles.
Hosting or joining extended family or community gatherings is another way to keep the spirit of Lunar New Year ongoing. Since many families continue to meet informally after the official calendar celebration, organizing potlucks or themed cultural meetings keeps the spirit alive.
We invite our readers to share their favorite things about or ways to celebrate Lunar New Year. Whether it's performing Dragon or Lion Dances, enjoying traditional foods, or participating in community events, every celebration adds to the rich tapestry of this ancient tradition.
In Cantonese, to wish someone a prosperous year, say "Kung Hei Fat Choy!" In Mandarin, the phrase is "Gong Xi Fa Chai!" During the Lunar New Year, people use red decorations for good fortune and prosperity. The Rabbit, a symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity, is associated with the Year of the Rabbit.
On the final day of Lunar New Year, called the Lantern Festival, people eat tangyuan, sweet glutinous rice balls, and children carry lanterns. As we bid farewell to the old and welcome the new, let's continue to celebrate Lunar New Year in our unique ways, embracing the renewal, family, and cultural heritage that it represents.
During Lunar New Year, extend the celebrations by organizing cultural performances, community events, or travel experiences that reflect the festival spirit, often lasting weeks or recurring over several weeks, like in Miami and Elk Grove, CA.
To keep the festivities alive, engage in ongoing social visits and gift exchanges, revisiting ancestor worship rituals, or hosting extended family gatherings to maintain connections and share the rich tapestry of the Lunar New Year tradition.
