作者：Tammy Tan

Have you ever experienced this: The new term is about to start, but you haven’t finished all your homework yet?

Last night, I had this kind of experience.

When I bought my Nianxiaohua before the Chinese New Year, I decided to show you guys the flowers I bought.

Then last night, the last night of the Chinese New Year holiday, I just realized that I hadn’t done it. I just found that I hadn’t done it. So I grabbed my phone and edited a video about one of my Niaoxiaohua — dahlia immediately. You can see it here.

It’s a little bit short, but I tried my best.

I bought four plants that day. I’ll show you in a week — At least I hope so.

As it’s the first day of the Year of the Horse, please let me say “Happy New Year! May the new year bring new opportunities and achievements to you all!”

There are many Chinese New Year customs, and they vary widely by region.

I’d like to share some of them from my hometown, which is in central China.

There’s a saying from the old generation: “How you spend the first day of the new year sets the tone for the rest of the year.” That’s why on the first day of the Chinese New Year, people in my hometown try to:
1. Be kind and avoid arguments.
2. Not sweep the floor (or you might “sweep away” good luck).
3. Wear new clothes for a fresh start.
4. Say auspicious words to invite good fortune.
5. Avoid breaking things (but if something breaks, say “suì suì píng’ān” — “peace every year” — to turn bad luck into good).
6. Visit elders and relatives to show respect.

As far as I know, everyone across the country believes this saying, but the specific approaches will vary.

Everything you do on this day is believed to influence your luck for the whole year! That’s why the Spring Festival is a true festival involving the participation of almost the entire population in China.

When I looked back at the entry I wrote yesterday, I realized that it contained an error, because I have two orchid plants, not one. When I wrote yesterday’s entry, I forgot the other one.

The other one came to my home earlier. And the flowers are bigger. I didn’t mention it before, maybe because I was a little bit disappointed when I received it. I thought I had bought a traditional Chinese orchid with smaller, thin flowers. When it reached my home, I found it was just a normal garden type.

However, I later found it was trying its best to grow and bloom. Therefore, I think I need to respect it just like other plants in my little garden. So I’m sorry I ignored it when I wrote the entry last night.

Finally, my orchid is in bloom.

This is no mean feat, because it came to me from Guangdong, where the environment and temperature are very different from Shanghai.

And recently, Shanghai has been quite cold. We even had a temperature of negative four degrees. Fortunately, my orchid is starting to bloom. I’ll try to take some pictures for you tomorrow.

Finally, I have some time to review my 2025 Chinese year.

As usual, I finished my courses on Coursera and read several books this year.

Something new is helping me enhance my cognition. Although it may not have started this year, its effects have become apparent during this time period. 继续阅读“Thanks a lot”