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February 14, 2017

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Home » Opinion » Foreign Views

With Valentine’s Day upon us, why wait for Qiqiao to show your romantic side?

By Sava Hassan | February 14, 2017, Tuesday | Print Edition

AS a Canadian educator teaching in China, I feel that familiarizing my students with the festivities in my citizenship country is one of my fundamental responsibilities.

Valentine’s Day permits me the opportunity to share precious moments of reminiscing about the joys of being young and full of life while previously celebrating the romantic occasion in my hometown of Montreal, Canada.

Reluctantly my Chinese students usually attempt to be jubilant and exultant in order to avoid disappointing me. They adamantly emphasize the fact they have their own Valentine’s Day, called Qiqiao Jie in Chinese, which takes place on the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar.

Last year, they posed the following question to me while anxiously anticipating that I would get discouraged enough to give up the planned discussion “Why should we celebrate Valentine’s Day, bearing in mind the fact that it is perceived as a Western celebration?” Nevertheless, I don’t give up that easily.

Their question opened the door to a stimulating discussion.

They exerted every possible effort to convince me that celebrating Valentine’s Day would be an unnecessary redundancy since they celebrate Qiqiao Jie, while I gave it my best shot to persuade them that it is essential for everyone to get rid of any apprehension or hesitation to participate in the festivities.

Heated discussion

I stressed the fact that being a hopeless romantic by nature myself, I do believe that any occasion that permits us the chance to display our romanticism should be universally celebrated.

In addition, men in general — and Chinese men in particular — are conditioned to be conservative in sharing their emotions and feelings for fear of being perceived as weak.

Hence, Valentine’s Day allows us the chance to satisfy our romantic tendencies without fear or apprehension.

Our heated discussion branched into the traditions associated with both Valentine’s Day and Qiqiao Jie.

Foreigners make certain to allocate sufficient time to search for the most appropriate gifts that would endear them to the hearts of their lovers.

Chocolate, candies, jewelry, flowers and perfumes are commonly offered to ladies by their significant others; while neckties, scarves, watches and cologne, among others, are bought by women for the target of their affection.

To celebrate the occasion, candle-lit dinners are often prepared with a variety of liquors, including champagne, to toast the event.

To avoid the hassle of cooking, most men take their ladies out for a romantic dinner at their favorite spots.

Different manner

My students informed me that Chinese celebrate Qiqiao Jie in a completely different manner.

On the night of Qiqiao Jie, people place a festoon on their yards. Subsequently, single or newly-wed women offer a basket of fruit, flowers, tea and facial powder to Niu Lang and Zhi Nu (two legendary lovers). Half of the facial powder is spread on the roof while the other half is divided among the young women to ensure that they bound in beauty to Zhi Nu.

Discussing the manners in which Westerners and Chinese differ in celebrating these occasions of love prompted me to hold a contest for the most original and innovative ways to celebrate either, or both, observances.

I was very delighted that my students came up with creative ideas including composing a romantic poem, making a video of precious events shared with their loved one, visiting the location of their first encounter, or planning an engagement party to mark the occasion.

I hope that all Chinese, young and old, married or single will allocate enough time to share the joys of Valentine’s Day with their loved ones. They may come up with their own unique ideas for gifts that will endear them eternally to the targets of their affection.

On February 14, get rid of your fears and take your special someone out for a romantic dinner to celebrate Valentine’s Day with people who may reciprocate and celebrate Qiqiao Jie with you at last.

Foreign Views


 

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