[New Year's Eve] The Flavor of the New Year

#NewYearAtmosphere#\Nowadays, there are always people in the city saying that they feel less and less of the New Year atmosphere. But what exactly is the 'New Year atmosphere'? Today, I truly experienced it a bit. City dwellers are used to the fast pace of urban life, so their impression of the New Year is also affected. They subconsciously accept the equation of New Year = material = consumer culture, which is why they feel a lack of 'New Year atmosphere.' In fact, people in the countryside don't think this way. When I returned to my hometown during the New Year, I noticed the atmosphere that the New Year is supposed to bring. It's a family gathering—no, a clan gathering. Before the New Year, we pay respects to our ancestors, prepare chickens and other offerings, go neatly to the local temple to worship, and then at the ancestral home, set up offerings and bow respectfully to pay tribute. Finally, we return to the old family home, where several generations have lived. Everyone busily decorates the old house to make it look nice and welcoming for the New Year… Watching the family work together to paste couplets at the door: some apply the paste, some carefully hold the red paper and place it precisely on the wall, others examine the angles from a distance and report on the placement… Of course, we still have to leave. Before leaving, we light a circle of firecrackers at the door. In the fluttering red sparks, the quiet old house feels alive. Watching this makes me feel very warm. Then we return—there's still the New Year's Eve dinner.\The New Year's Eve dinner, eating well and drinking well, doing what needs to be done—that is what celebrating the New Year truly is!