Personalized couplets written by young people.
As the Spring Festival of the Year of the Dragon approaches, many young people wear Hanfu to prepare for the New Year. (Correspondent: Shi Jianhua)
In the past, if you asked a young person "How are you planning to spend the New Year?", you would most likely hear "Watching the Spring Festival Gala while listening to the seven aunts and eight aunts chatting"; but in recent years, more and more "post-95s" and "00 Later, he became the "New Year's Eve host" in his family. Reporters interviewed found that in addition to the previously popular trend of finding a "hookup" to travel for the New Year, a particularly prominent change this year is that more and more young people want to regain the ritual sense of the Spring Festival: some people have the energy to stay up late to do PPT , just to organize a "Family Spring Festival Gala"; some people organized a Spring Festival group photo of the whole family in advance; some even prepared beautiful Chinese New Year Hanfu and wrote spontaneous Spring Festival couplets dedicated to the younger generation... Under this change, the elders Naturally, they were happy and relaxed. They were happy to find that their "eldest child" had not only matured, but was still young and energetic, and maintained his love for traditional customs.
Text and pictures/Guangzhou Daily all-media reporter Feng Qiuyu and intern Huang Mingyu
"Fruit" couplet posted on door: Showing vitality and beautiful vision
When talking about the Spring Festival, the first thing that Xiaoqing, a post-00s generation, thinks of is the red Spring Festival couplets. During the Spring Festival in previous years, her grandfather would take her to the store to choose Spring Festival couplets. “Every wall in the shop that sells Spring Festival couplets is covered with all kinds of couplets. The smell of last year hits your face as soon as you walk in.”
Posting Spring Festival couplets every year before the Spring Festival also symbolizes the best wishes for life in the coming year. Xiaoqing told reporters that various Spring Festival couplets carry different meanings, so the selection of Spring Festival couplets also needs to be rigorous and careful. "My grandfather is very particular about Spring Festival couplets. Praying couplets must be posted on the door of the house, and couplets such as 'Business is prosperous and wealth will come in' are posted on factories and stores."
The dazzling Spring Festival couplets not only inherit the flavor of the New Year, but also show off the high-spirited vitality of young people. When young people begin to host the New Year, they will write down fashionable couplets that are exclusive to the new generation, such as "rich and educated, no fat and no worries", "hahaha", "666" and "fafafa" posted at home At the door, Chinese and English words, chemical elements, image emoticons, etc. appeared in the couplets one after another. Various Internet slang and "homophonic memes" emerged in an endless stream, making people couldn't help but sigh, "You can tell that young people live there just by looking at the couplets." In these couplets, "straightforward" wishes replace implicit expectations, and the vigor and frankness of young people also unfold along with the Spring Festival couplets.
Xiaoqing admitted that when she first saw these "new couplets", she was "eye-opening". "But I quickly accepted it. This is actually also a kind of longing and sustenance for the New Year, but young people's language is more straightforward and the form is richer." In her opinion, although some people may find it inappropriate to write Spring Festival couplets like this. It is in line with tradition, but it is not necessary to follow the established "template" during the Chinese New Year. The most important thing is to be reunited and happy as a family. "The so-called 'young people organize the Spring Festival' is actually about exploring new ways to make everyone happy during the New Year amid changing values."
Looking for a “Chinese New Year partner”: gain relaxation and freedom in short-term companionship
Visiting relatives during the Spring Festival is also one of the traditional customs. Many of the older generation are "activists". Every year, they take their younger members of the family, pick up prepared New Year gifts, and go to relatives' homes early in the morning to pay New Year greetings and chat about family issues. In recent years, after some young people were embarrassed by being "over-cared" by relatives during the Chinese New Year, they all hope that a certain "sense of boundaries" can be maintained during socializing with relatives during the Spring Festival. This desire for clear social boundaries has also contributed to the gradual popularity of "hookup culture". In recent years, titles such as "rice dater", "travel dater" and "postgraduate entrance exam dater" have swept the social circles of young people.
Adhering to the concept of "everything can be matched", young people are now also looking for "New Year's Eve partners" - searching for keywords on social platforms, the reporter saw that many young people are looking for New Year's Eve dinner together or Spring Festival travel The "match".
Xinxin twice traveled with a "match" she found on the Internet. "She took photos for me, and I made specific travel plans. We got along very well during the trip, but we didn't communicate much after the trip." In Xinxin's view, "hook-up" is a precise and short-term relationship. Companionship can meet the needs of young people in a specific scenario. The same is true for "Chinese New Year dating". Young people will clearly put forward some requirements for "Chinese New Year dating" in their posts, such as age, gender and personality. They will also list their plans during the Spring Festival, such as inviting "Chinese New Year dating". Together we go to the flower market, play mahjong, walk the dog and cat, etc.
Xinxin said that young people will yearn more for a social "sense of boundaries" and seek interpersonal relationships that match their personal hobbies and needs. "Chinese New Year hookups" are actually a manifestation of contemporary young people's pursuit of ease and freedom in interpersonal interactions.
From "escape" to "active integration": Gaining strength from traditional customs
As a "post-00s" born in the last Year of the Dragon, Pan Pan has already had many plans for the upcoming Spring Festival of the Year of the Dragon. “When I was a kid, I thought the traditional New Year rituals were indifferent or even bothersome, but after I left my hometown to work, I really missed the Spring Festival in my childhood. After the holidays, I wanted to go home and celebrate the New Year.”
"This year is my zodiac year. I have already bought a 'dragon flying' decoration online to decorate my home." Pan Pan said, "Doing new year shopping is a very important New Year ritual. I must do it in It feels right to stroll slowly with my parents in the supermarket where "Gong Xi Fa Cai" is playing and buy a cart full of New Year's goods."
In addition, Pan Pan also found a photo studio and planned to invite his grandparents, parents, etc. to take family photos together. "I heard that there will be a dragon dance event with 100 people in my hometown this year, and I will also go to participate." She told reporters. It may sound incredible, but now many people are enthusiastic about participating in this traditional New Year ceremony. After 00". During the Spring Festival last year, Pan Pan and her friends went to set off the Kongming lanterns. "As long as young people find it fun, lively and festive, they will participate."
Reporters interviewed found that more and more young people are indeed participating in annual activities such as lion dances and flower markets. "Everyone hopes to find a sense of 'roots' and gain strength from this collective joy." Pan Pan said that the pace of life has become faster in recent years, but the flavor of the year seems to have faded, and young people have escaped from the past. "To "active integration", they actually hope to gain a long-term and stable sense of intimacy from the family.
Wearing Hanfu to visit the flower market: Classical aesthetics adds more flavor to the New Year
As the Spring Festival approaches, Coco, a hip-hop teacher born after 1995, has prepared red and white Chinese New Year Hanfu in advance. This year she also prepared Hanfu for her parents, and she is looking forward to wearing Hanfu together to visit the flower market and take photos. She showed reporters her beautiful and neatly arranged hair, which also had various beautiful beads, flowers, etc. "Being able to wear Hanfu and dress up as much as you like on festive days is the flavor of the New Year for me."
Young people Jiahong, Kaka and Aye who also love Hanfu culture are all working in the catering industry in Guangzhou. They have also prepared Ming Dynasty-style Hanfu and are preparing to participate in the Guangzhou Garden Expo, which will open on February 4. Kaka said: "No matter which dynasty the Hanfu is from, there will always be a seam in the middle. This is what Confucian traditional culture emphasizes on 'being upright'. We like to wear Hanfu, especially on such a grand and festive day as the Spring Festival, we hope even more Being able to wear Hanfu on the streets adds more flavor to the Spring Festival."
Jiang Qimin, supervisor of the Guangdong Traditional Culture Promotion Association, said that "wearing Hanfu and visiting the flower market" has gradually become an indispensable part of the Spring Festival in Guangzhou. Many young people wore colorful Hanfu and shuttled through the flower market, expressing their expectations for the new year in such a beautiful atmosphere. As more and more young people join this activity, Hanfu has become a unique cultural bridge connecting the older and younger generations. "The classical charm of Hanfu complements the grand and joyful atmosphere of the Spring Festival, creating a unique sense of ritual. This sense of ritual not only provides participants with a profound cultural experience, but also demonstrates the pursuit of Chinese classical aesthetics and the appreciation of China Exploration and respect for the profound heritage of culture.”
Organizing a “Family Spring Festival Gala”: Adding a sense of ritual to the family during the New Year
"This year during the Chinese New Year, I will organize a 'Family Spring Festival Gala' with the whole family, and also make a vlog and send it to the family group, so that relatives who cannot go home for the New Year can also enjoy it." 28-year-old Chen Lin told reporters . Chen Lin works for a foreign company in Guangzhou, and organizing the annual meeting is an important task for her at the end of each year. Therefore, from creativity to organization, hosting a "Family Spring Festival Gala" is very familiar to her. In the past, she just wanted to have a good rest every Spring Festival, but this year she felt that she should "do something" for this big family.
"My hometown is in Weihai, Shandong. My relatives are usually scattered in many places. My uncle's family is in Beijing, I am in Guangzhou, and my aunt's family has gone abroad. It is not easy to get together. I must leave beautiful memories. This year, I want to make everyone One minute passed as if it were two minutes." Chen Lin said that on her "program list", there were not only violin performances by her cousin, love song duets by her uncle and aunt, martial arts performances by her nephew, but also "programs" in which the whole family participated. Rabbit Dance”. "Sometimes the form is indeed greater than the content. I feel more and more that the ritual of the New Year is very important. I feel very happy to be able to make my own contribution to this ritual."