‘For me, Chinese New Year is an important time for families to get together… Spending quality time together, even in a simple setting, is among the most meaningful moments.’ – Malaysian singer, Ribbon Ooi.
To my Chinese friends, colleagues and everyone celebrating the Chinese New Year ‘May the Year of the Horse bring you health, happiness and success.’
Tomorrow is Chinese New Year eve when all family members will sit down for the reunion dinner, honour ancestors and exchange red envelopes filled with money (‘ang pow’).
At the stroke of midnight, fireworks will be set off to ward off the mythical beast Nian and evil.
Elders will give ‘ang pow’ to children to pass on good fortune and blessings for the coming year. Many celebrants will also stay up late to welcome the new year.
Chinese New Year 2026, the Year of the Fire Horse, falls on Tuesday, February 17, 2026. The Year of the Fire Horse is special in the Chinese zodiac because it appears just once every 60 years.
In Eastern culture, the horse symbolises action, freedom and forward momentum. In the traditional Chinese zodiac, the horse ranks seventh of the 12 animals, symbolising vitality, speed, independence and an unrestrained spirit. Characteristics commonly associated with the horse are courage, passion and a refusal to be confined.
If you are celebrating the Chinese Year and you have not finished spring cleaning your house, tomorrow is the last day for you to do.
Spring cleaning involves cleaning, decluttering and organising every corner of the house; doing so is believed to sweep away bad luck and remove negative energy accumulated over the past and welcome good fortune.
For the Chinese, the first day of the Chinese New Year is also the first blank page of a 365-page book.
On the first day of the Chinese New Year, celebrants avoid sweeping or cleaning to avoid washing away good luck.
In the olden days, such beliefs were strongly adhered to by families who still had elders living with them. Nowadays, some Chinese families disregard them.
This year, I have two family reunion dinners to attend.
One of my nephews, Ah Kiong, will be having his family reunion lunch at a restaurant. I have been invited. I expect his wife, children, his father-in-law and his mother-in-law will be there.
Ah Kiong believes it is easier to dine out than to eat at home. It is convenient because like him, his wife is also working.
Dining out means there will be no dirty dishes, pots and pans to clean. There is no need to shop, prepare and cook the food. There is also no need to plan for a menu.
Dining out also offers a change of scenery and fresh air as well the opportunity to taste restaurant food.
I will go home after the lunch with Ah Kiong. In the evening, I will attend the family reunion dinner at the house of my son, Pat.
His wife, Amelia, will be cooking some of the dishes while her mother, who’s a good cook, will bring some of the food she prepares.
Present at the dinner will be Pat, Amelia, their young sons, Amelia’s parent and I. After dinner, we will all pose for group photos to mark the Chinese New Year 2026.
I will wear my red Chinese New Year clothes to Ah Kiong’s family reunion lunch and Pat’s family reunion dinner.
Yes, it is considered very good, auspicious and traditional to wear new clothes for Chinese New Year.
Red, you see, symbolises a fresh start, the shedding of old, bad luck, and welcoming prosperity for the year ahead.
Red, gold, and bright, vibrant colours are encouraged to bring good luck while black and white, traditionally associated with mourning, funerals and misfortune are generally avoided.
Weeks before the Chinese New Year, some supermarkets in Kuching were already selling Chinese New Year cheongsams with a blend of traditional mandarin collars, knot buttons and side slits with modern twists like puff sleeves,
On sale were also men’s Mandarin shirts with classic collar designs and buttoned front jackets.
I guess when it comes to business, the early bird gets the worm.
Both Ah Kiong and Pat have invited me to sleep at their houses on Chinese New Year eve.
But I have turned down their offers because I think it’s better to welcome the Year of the Fire Horse in my own house. I will not be alone because I have two dogs and cat.
With many celebrants eager to usher in luck and prosperity of the New Chinese Year, I expect fireworks to light the sky for hours in my neighbourhood.
My dogs are terrified of fireworks because of their sensitive hearing and will seek refuge inside the house. That is why I will stay at home with them.
By now, some of my neighbours have already put up red big lanterns and spring couplets at the entrances of their homes. If you see these decorations, you know that Chinese families live there.
For the past few weeks, I have had fun admiring the Chinese New Year decorations on sale in certain shops. Very popular this year are ‘ang pow’ and spring couplets with images of galloping horses and red banners with calligraphy expressing good wishes for the new year.
There are also table cloths with Chinese symbols of good fortune, too.
Since I am alone, I will not have an open house this Chinese New Year.
Maybe I will visit Ah Kiong. Maybe I will go window shopping, or maybe I will just relax at home and catch up on my beauty sleep.
Once again, to my Chinese friends, colleagues and everyone celebrating, ‘May the Year of the Horse bring you health, happiness, and success.’
