Chinese Reunion Dinner: Celebrating Family and Tradition
Chinese New Year is known to be full of peace and a cheerful holiday that is normally celebrated for the first fifteen days of the year. It is also known to be days of family reunion when all family members would finally come back home and sit together. Before bidding farewell to the old year, New Year’s Eve dinner is an important component of the festival. It is regarded as the last meal of the old year when family is encouraged to enjoy the meals as well as the drinks and cross over to the New Year together. In this family reunion essay will be briefly discussed the process of Chinese Reunion Family Dinner.
Who Needs to Join the Reunion Dinner?
Traditionally, Reunion Dinner is celebrated purposely for family members’ reconnection. It is a time to strengthen family bonds especially with members who needed to move away from their homes or birth place to make a living. However, in the current modern society, researchers found out that the celebration of Reunion Dinner is extended over family boundaries. People start to redefine the meaning of family members. In modern days, Reunion Dinner participants include friends who are could not travel back home due to work commitment.
Where is the Reunion Dinner Held?
In traditional practice, Reunion Dinner needs to be held at the home of the eldest generation depending on the surviving members that can be grandparents’, parents’, or the eldest siblings’ home. Although, in today’s society, returning to ancestral home is a no longer a requirement for younger generation. The dinner venue can be flexible depending on the family’s preference. Some people even choose to dine at restaurants for practical reasons like being able to enjoy the meal without worrying of food preparation and cleaning up afterward. The place of Reunion Dinner is linked with the sense of emotional attachment of the family and therefore, is negotiable in modern days.
Activities before the Reunion Dinner
Besides returning home for the Reunion Dinner, there are also activities that are traditionally required to carry out before the dinner. The family is expected to offer sacrifice to the ancestors by arranging a table of dishes with seat for each of them. The eldest family member begin by pouring drinks for the ancestors. They shall begin eating when candles and joss sticks are lit. At the same time, the remaining family member would burn some more joss sticks and worship the ancestors with bended knees.
Conclusion
Chinese reunion dinner before the Chinese New Year is a time for family and traditions. And interestingly, people also invite staffs to the dinner because they are regarded as a part of the family because of their contribution toward the company’s success .
