An aspect of the Chinese New Year is the all-important reunion dinner. It is usually to be held on the eve of the New Year season but due to travel or work reasons, some families hold it before the eve. I just had mine 2 days ago since I'm going to be away during the period.
Some people feel that having it before the eve is not proper but to me, it's more of the fact that every family member alive gets together to enjoy the time shared. It's just like having Valentine's Day every day instead of just that one special day. It makes more sense to show love to your partner every day than to quarrel with him every other day except Valentine's Day, doesn't it?
There's also a debate between home-cooked food or takeaway food for the dinner. Does takeaway food make the dinner any less real? It's not the date or the food that matters but the concept of the word "family", I feel. Yes, cooking is a labour of love but if certain reasons cause us not to be able to have home-cooked dishes, the reunion dinner can still go on even if we have to eat takeaway food, or eat out, for that matter.
There are various reasons why people like Chinese New Year. Some look forward to the long break from work while some relish the experience of being with relatives. Some are into the cultural aspect of the season, which is an interesting opinion. There are people who feel the opposite. They detest the rituals and customs associated with the season, which present trouble for those who follow these traditions.
I love to read about the symbolism linked to the festival, about why we eat or do certain things. It is exciting to know more about the reasons behind what we do in preparation for the season. :) It makes them seem more significant when we carry them out.
Some people choose to go overseas during the New Year, primarily to avoid visitors. I do empathise with swinging singles who hate their relatives and friends asking when they are going to get married and thus decide to go abroad. I had a taste of this at my brother's wedding and I told them that it'd happen a decade later. Now the time's almost up but I seriously don't care about their reaction because it's my life and my problem. Period.
Some families travel abroad so that their long-standing feud with their relatives will not be any worse. They want to avoid seeing certain people and this gives them a chance to relax at the same time. On the other hand, some travel to be with their relatives who live overseas.
I think it's really the right of the families or individuals to decide to travel for negative reasons. People who are not in the knowing should not comment on or judge them but should use their free time to do other more worthwhile things instead.
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