Lunar New Year is coming up on January 22nd, and thus a couple of poems on the topic of starting a new year, new beginnings, and celebration.
On the Occasion of Lunar New Year
I celebrate every New Year that comes along:
Lunar New Year
Losar
Nowruz
Rosh Hashanah
Occidental New Year
Accidental New Year
New Year on other planets
New Year in every orbit
New Year in every world
One New Year after another.
It’s always New Year somewhere –
It’s always New Year here.
– Shanti Natania Grace
© 2023 Shanti Natania Grac
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This poem is by Fan Chengda, who lived from 1126–1193 and was one of the best-known Chinese poets of the Song Dynasty. What could be more fun than selling silliness, enjoying the fun of it, celebrating and being as silly as you want?
New Year’s Poem on Selling Silliness
On New Year’s Eve, no one is asleep at midnight,
They pray to gods for blessings, and wait for the New Year to arrive.
A group of children hawk along the street, saying they have “silliness” for sale.
But who doesn’t have silliness? There’s enough in the city and more to spare.
From south to north in the alley, they laugh and banter, but couldn’t make a sale.
An old man sitting behind curtains asks: How much for your silliness?
The children answer: grandpa doesn’t need to pay money,
you can be in our debt for hundreds and thousands of years.
– Fan Chengda
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Photo from https://www.cchatty.com/Chinese-New-Year-Dragon-Dance-g-100203
