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Tea on Thursday 18 : Chinese Tea Poetry

"Garden Party" tag inspired by a poem by Wang Wei.  It would have been  a delight to sip tea in the garden, but ... Softly closing the chamber door,  Alone I await you in the empty room.  You never came.  Disappointed, I drink solitary tea .       - Wang Wei: An Occasional Poem During the last year, I have been reading a lot about tea, and especially poetry inspired by tea. This little verse by Wang Wei is amongst my favourites. However, the most well known tea poem of the same period in Chinese history was written by Lu Tong , a hermit, who was so moved by a gift of tea that he wrote : The first cup kisses away my thirst, and my loneliness is quelled by the second,  The third gives insight worthy of ancient scrolls,  and the fourth exiles my troubles,  My body becomes lighter with the fifth, and the sixth sends word from the immortals, But the seventh - of the seventh cup -  If I drink you, a wind will hurry...

Out of the Red

In our family, children love red envelopes. They signify special occasions, usually a party, and gifts of money. We have just celebrated the beginning of the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Horse, with the consumption of amazing amounts of delicious food, mah jong challenges for all ages, and with the giving of red envelopes - lai see ( in Cantonese) and hong bao ( in Mandarin) which contained "lucky" money. Tradition suggests that on auspicious occasions like the lunar new year  and weddings, money in the red envelopes  means blessings and  good luck bestowed on the young by the older generation (the unmarried by the married)  and on the bride and groom by the guests. Some employees are also lucky enough to receive red envelopes from their bosses. It is also a happy custom to give red envelopes of money for special services given like Chinese lion dancers in a new year's performance. Always red, the colour of good luck, the lai see (hong bao) are often ...

Year of the Snake : Happy Chinese New Year

 Happy Chinese New Year - the first day of the lunar year was last week, but with celebrations continuing  for at least two weeks, we had our family get together last night. We all look forward to the celebrations because they all mean something special to each of us Chinese New Year = colourful Lion dances  Chinese New Year = loud music and fun  Chinese New Year = lucky red packets of money  Chinese New Year = a special event and dressing up Chinese New Year = yummy food and lots of it Chinese New Year = family and friends celebrating together All the best to my family and friends all over the world during  the Year of the Snake.

Where did January go?

I woke up this morning with a shock - it is February! Not sure what happened to January.... It's been a busy week - top of  my "to do" list was to do some preparation for the Wise Women Exhibition, which I will be curating to celebrate International Women's Day. The opening is on 8 March and the advertising goes out this week. The photo above is of some "almost finished" art dolls which will be included in the exhibition. Participants in my "Wise Women" workshop will also be displaying their work. Here is one of them - a fantastic result from a beginner doll maker! To find out more about these workshops  before the exhibition -  please check  Timeless Textiles I have also just managed to keep up with the blog group challenge  Tag Tuesday . I struggled a bit with both the themes "White" and  "Vintage" but in the end was fairly happy with my tags.   I tried some different techniques with this vintage one - a ph...

Year of the Dragon

Kung Hei Fat Choy - Cantonese for Happy New Year. Welcome the Year of the Dragon . A very auspicious year  it would seem … from the International Business Times … The Year of the Dragon is one of the most revered years of the Chinese New Year calendar, and those born under the sign are regarded as innovative, passionate people who are colourful, confident and fearless…. the Dragon is sometimes called a "karmic sign." The Dragon is larger than life and its appearance means that big things are to come. The Year of the Dragon is a flowing river, not a stagnant lake, so things happen quickly earlier in the year. The Dragon marks progression, perseverance and auspiciousness. It may also bring about unpredictable events. To celebrate the new year we spent a couple of days in Sydney with our  family for the launch of the Chinese New Year Festival. We are sorry we will not be able to enjoy the legendary parade next weekend, but it clashes with the beginning of the schoo...