The Beautiful Full Moon

What is more romantic than looking at the full moon, the beautiful silver orb suspended in a dark velvet sky?

Poems and songs have been composed about the moon, using the moon as a symbol to express their creators' emotions. One of my favorites is the Chinese song entitled "The Moon Represents My Heart" ( Yueh Liang Tai Piow Woh Ter Sin ). Even though I don't know the lyrics since I do not know Mandarin, I can feel the emotions raised by the singer.

Here I would like to share a few pictures of the moon taken early in the morning as the moonlight streamed through my bedroom window and woke me up. This was taken at 0543 hours.

The next one is taken at 0544 hours.

Don't you think it looks like a beautiful luminous pearl, glowing wondrously high above us?

The next picture shows the moon at dawn, from my bedroom window, at 0605 hours.

Its beauty is no less diminished with the lightening sky.

Praise the Lord for giving us such beauty to enjoy and appreciate. Legends and traditions are also associated with the moon. One of the most enduring is the throwing of mandarin oranges by single ladies into the sea in hopes of finding a suitor. This event is held on the last night of the Chinese Lunar New Year when the moon is at its fullest and most beautiful.

Chap Goh Mei, the 15th and Last Day of the Chinese New Year

Tomorrow marks the last day of the Chinese New Year which is celebrated for 15 days. It is the night when the moon is full and at its brightest, a night made for love and romance. This is a very big celebration in Penang Island as there are many Hokkiens living there. Chap Goh Mei ((the 15th day in the Hokkien dialect) as it is called, will see single ladies observing the tradition of throwing mandarin oranges into the sea or lake or river, whichever is close by.

On these mandarins will be their names and contact numbers.

Eligible men will fish out these mandarins and contact the young ladies. From there, hopefully, friendships will be initiated with aspirations of something more permanent.

Apart from the excitement of throwing mandarins at night, during the day there will be lion and dragon dances, to the accompaniment of drums and fire crackers.

Fire crackers have been banned by the authorities but they are still burned for what is Chinese New Year without fire crackers?

The loud sounds of crackers exploding, leaving behind a carpet of red are auspicious and every Chinese household will have red decorations and lanterns as red is THE color, denoting Luck and Prosperity. Women and even men will be decked out in various shades of red.

Chinese temples are lighted up with hundreds of red lanterns and fireworks light up the skies.

The last day of the celebration of The Year of the Dragon will go out with a great bang.

Folks will breathe a sigh of relief as they can then buckle into the mundane routine of “normal” life once more. No more gorging on food at the many “open houses”, ceaseless nibbling of various types of cookies and munching on mandarins which inevitably leads to sore throats and coughs! Lots of us will have to double up our exercise workouts to lose the extra baggage that is showing.

Gong Xi Fa Cai to all who celebrate Chinese New Year!!