‘Gung Hei Fat Choi’ as we celebrate Chinese New Year
Our homes have celebrated Chinese New Year with festivities, lantern making, food, music, talks and language learning
Residents, team members and visitors have all come together for fun activities to mark the start of the Year of the Rabbit.
At The Aldbury, residents were greeted with jasmine tea and fortune cookies with traditional Chinese music playing in the background ahead of an arts and crafts session on making Chinese lanterns.
After much threading and construction, resident Beryl Spaulding said of the completed works when they were held up: “Just beautiful”.
Companionship Team member Cara Duroe said: “Some of the messages in the fortune cookies were very apt. Ronald Woolley’s read, ‘Getting older means getting better. Old is good. Get old. Get happy.’ Another read, ‘Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.’
“Residents also learned how to draw their name in Chinese. Gwendolyne Hunte took great care in filling hers out, asking for the finished paper to be put on her bedroom wall. “This was a great celebration overall, promoting awareness of another culture and providing stimulation through our planned activities.”
The fun here at Kingfishers, included a talk by Senior Care Lead Fay Suenfa.
Born in China, Fay shared details of her family traditions and how they celebrate Chinese New Year.
Our other homes celebrating the day included Canford Chase which held a tai chi morning and invited residents to make their own Chinese-themed fans.
At Linden House, residents made Chinese-style hats and decorated a model of a dragon’s head during a craft session.
Each Chinese New Year is linked to an animal in the Chinese zodiac cycle. 2023 is the year of the water rabbit. As this is a symbol of longevity, peace and prosperity, the year is predicted to be one of hope.
The traditional New Year greeting ‘Gung Hei Fat Choi’ is translated into English as ‘Congratulations and best wishes for a prosperous New Year’.