easter monday

Wishing you a Happy Easter 


filled with rejuvenation and love!

good friday

Easter spells out beauty, the rare beauty of new life.

~S.D. Gordon

year of the dragon

Rice (米饭; mǐfàn) - fertility, luck, wealth, rice symbolizes a link between Heaven (God) and Earth (Mankind)

Today is Chinese New Year, and it is now the Year of the Dragon.  The dragon, according to Chinese astrology, is the most powerful of the 12 signs of the zodiac...it's associated with high energy and prosperity.

Last night we celebrated Chinese New Year's Eve at my parents.  There is a long list of foods that have symbolic meaning to them, and they worked very hard (high energy!)  to fight the crowds at the Chinese food market, to insure that we had a lot of food (prosperity).  It is definitely the Year of the Dragon, as there was an abundance of delicious foods prepared for this special evening.  Here's a small peek at some of the food we had, and their symbolic meaning.

Abalone (sea snail; 鳆; fù) - definite good fortune; Oyster, dried (ho xi) - all good things, good luck; Fish ball (鱼蛋; yúdàn) - reunion; Shiitake, Black mushroom (冬菇; dōnggū) - longevity, sizing opportunities.

Vegetable, green (绿叶菜; lǜyècài) - close family ties.

Fish - The word 魚 (yú), meaning "fish", has the same pronunciation as the word 餘, which is "remain or surplus", 'having leftovers of money', an increase in prosperity.

Scallops ( 扇贝; shànbèi) - opening of new horizons.

Shrimp (小虾; xiǎoxiā) - happiness and good fortune.

Sweets and fruits are served on a round tray, the form resembling togetherness, hence the tray is called the 'Tray of Togetherness'.

I love these little sesame treats...the "crack" in the ball looks like a "smile", which represents happiness.  Love that!

 Noodles (面条; miàntiáo) uncut - long life.

{Food Information source:  Nations Online}

Gung Hay Fat Choi!

(Happy Lunar New Year!)

last year

"...live this year as if it were your last"

I stumbled across a book with this title, and discovered that many people have blogged about their experience of doing this...live and document a year in their lives as if it were going to be their last.  I thought it was an interesting blog concept..slightly morbid, but interesting.  Then I realized that unknowingly, this is something I think myself, and many bloggers have been doing sub-conciously all along.

Now, I don't write as if this is my last year.  But I think as a writer (especially one who likes to touch on personal stories), we write and blog to document all these wonderful moments in our lives.  We do this to remember.  And honestly, to re-live it.  To observe and bring light to small (and not so small) moments.  Then embrace and learn the lessons from it.  Then share them with family and friends, old and new.





And as in life, we don't know how long we will continue, but if we do, we will live our lives with purpose and meaning. We share our observations and dreams, not for fame, but for inspiration.

So it's with this personal note, I wish all of you, a very Happy New Year.  To remember the past year of smiles and tears ...embrace and learn from them, and move forward to laugh and cry, in 2012.

Happy NewYear!!!