In Hops The Rabbit

We did not manage to descend upon Chinatown on 除夕, as it fell on a working day this year. Thankfully, we were on half day, hence Hubby and I could do some very last minute shopping in Holland Village. 

I love the jubilant mood every 除夕. The smiles on shopkeepers' faces seemed wider, early auspicious greetings abounded, loud Chinese New Year songs blasted out as we were shopping - the entire atmosphere around us was dense with exhilarated anticipation of Chinese New Year, which is so immensely fundamental to our family and many others. 

I love how most families were bustling with eager spring-cleaning before the all-important 大年初一, and how they decorated their homes with vibrant red and gold trinkets. I love going to the plant nursery to feel the efficacious mood of people buying beautiful plants in all kinds of hues and shapes by the dozens. Most of all, I truly relish immersing in the ambience of department stores, shopping malls and supermarkets, where people are buying new clothes, new bedsheets and endless jars of delectable CNY goodies frenetically. 

Being brought up in rather traditional Chinese families, Hubby and I were infused with the spirit of Chinese New Year every year. This year, we spent the idyllic and balmy afternoon of the eve of the Rabbit year sprucing up our house with vivid red trinkets to intensify the festive atmosphere of CNY. Somehow, these resplendent red and gold decorations and the umpteen plants that Hubby is fond of buying never failed to bolster the mood by several notches. 

In the evening, we set off - together with droves of Chinese Singaporeans - for our reunion dinner with Hubby's family. This year, we booked a table in a country club's ballroom, and the experience was very pleasant. The lofty ceiling coupled with ample space in the ballroom created a very memorable reunion dinner experience for all of us. This was further amplified by the excellent food and scrumptious lo hei that I enjoyed thoroughly. What a perfect start to the Rabbit year! 

Back home, the Bees were very eager to 守岁, yet it was very apparent that they were thoroughly fatigued by 11.30pm. They managed to keep awake until 11.50pm, by which Hubby and I snuggled alongside each other to countdown to the Chinese New Year, with the decades-old familiar New Year tunes belted out on TV. 

It is familiar rituals like these that make important festivals so significant and fundamental in our lives - so that we are grounded in our values and are comforted in the knowledge that traditions are carried out generations after generations. 

兔年快乐，心想事成！