This year's CNY was the most special for me - that's because I went to my mother's hometown for most of the holidays. That's 500 km++ from my house - my back hurts from more than 5 hours travelling in the car. Yet, the journey was nothing compared what I experienced there.
First off, let me try to describe my mother's external family to you. The matron was none other than my maternal grandmother, until she passed away a couple of years ago (mourning). After that, the family was divided into three generations. The eldest was the generation of my mum's - my aunts and uncles, who formed the "elders" of the clan. Next up is the Younger Generation A, which consists of my elder cousins, those who were already working, with some already married. The oldest among the group was cousin Kok Heng, married with a thirteen-year old daughter (So that makes me an uncle. Hehe). He was the undisputed ringleader, though he still refers to the elders for family decisions. Lastly, its the Younger Generation B, my age. Amongst them, I'm the third eldest. My niece was in this clique too.
Alright, back to the story. At the end of our journey, warm greetings were already in order. We greet our elders one by one, then clap the backs of those our ages. A little hustling was in order as my cousin Fong wanted to rub my lil' bro's head. Then, we stuff away the things we brought, giving the presents away to some relatives, and settled down for the reunion dinner on the CNY eve. However, there's too much of us for the table, so we take turns to eat our fill. Oops...
Skipping to CNY Day One...... My, my, those red packet stack everyone's holding must be half an inch thick! The elders are giving them out, but they still have a veritable stack left. And those of us that are still single...... I'll leave it to you to guess.
Reverting back to nighttime...... Of course, we play lots of...... music CDs, since firecrackers are not allowed. Still, it was a treat since we get to stay up until well past midnight playing about, something I can hardly do back home.
But, after all the things that we do as a family, there's more within than meets the eye. As I lie down in the wee hours of the morning, thinking, I came upon this conclusion - that its the family bond here that keeps us together, that makes me truly feel at home here. All in all, CNY is, of course, not about enjoying yourself until you reek of enjoyment - its about having and keeping a family that you truly belongs.
Happy New Year to you all, and may you and your families recieved the best blessings from everyone else.
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