We celebrated Chinese New Year of Ox last Friday with a lion dance.  Also known as the Spring Festival, it is a time for family reunions, for visits with friends and for good wishes for the coming year. The fifteen days of celebration begins on the eve of the lunar New Year’s Day, which is Friday, and ends on the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar calendar, which is the Lantern Festival. To the people in China, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, etc., the Spring Festival is as important as Christmas.

The lion dance around the school was amazing as the performers mimiced a lion’s movement in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune. It was also interesting to try out Chinese traditional calligraphy using the brush pens to write some New Year blessings to take home. Through this event, we see more cultures in the Carmel community starting to thrive.