2/9/2014 Chinese New Year Appreciation Dinner

Some performers of Troy University Chinese Lunar New Year including me went to Renaissance hotel, Montgomery to give a performance at Confucius Institute’s 2014 Chinese New Year Appreciation Dinner hosted by Chancellor of Troy University Dr. Jack Hawkins Wednesday night. That was really a great night for all of us.

Chinese New Year was known as Spring Festival which is the most solemn of the Chinese people's traditional festival, but also a symbol of unity, prosperity, and new hope for the future sustenance of the festival. According to records, Spring Festival has more than 4,000 years in the long river of history. I am proud of the splendid Chinese civilization for thousands of years.

The vice-president Earl Ingram gave a beginning speech about conclusion of the whole year’s work in Confucius Institute. And then some teachers in Confucius Institute gave thanks to all the guests. One of the teachers made me surprised because of his fluent Chinese as an English speaker. He knew Chinese traditional culture even set phrase very well.

After all the speech, we began Chinese New Year Appreciation Performance at 7 P.M. Jasmine Yarou, the minister of arts department in Chinese Student and Scholar Association, was the emcee. The first performance was instrumental ensemble by bamboo flute and Guzheng, which is a traditional musical instrument of China. That music Xueshanchunxiao, which showed us people looking forward to happy life, was known to every family in China. Peacock Dance and Fan Dance were both Chinese traditional dancing, the first depicted a whole day life of a peacock and expresses minority ethnical people’s beautiful wishes of harmonious relations between human and animals and has a vivid depiction and profound meaning; The second told us when the Chinese New Year comes, it takes on a new look and a blissful atmosphere full of joyful activities.  

We did a good job and achieved great success that night. I was proud of all our performer because we shared our talent and traditional culture to people who didn’t know China very well. It was a wonderful experience for me. I believe that opportunities are always for the prepared mind. So we should just be ready all the time for any opportunity!    

  

2/2/2014 Snow Day in Alabama

We had a three days winter holiday this week because of the bad weather. Fortunately, the third day of that holiday is Chinese lunar new year eve. So I think the white and pure snow was the gift for all Chinese students from God. All the schools in Alabama were closed and most of people stayed at home for the whole three days. It was the first time to see such a heavy snow in south for me. I had lived in south of China, the city which has the same latitude and climate with Troy, for almost twenty years before I came to America. So when I saw the heavy snow in such a warm city, I felt so fresh though it was not my first time to see heavy snow. But the other time I saw heavy snow were in north city such as New York City or snow mountains.

In the afternoon of the first day, I went to Montgomery with my friends. The sky was grey and in freezing rain at that time, the car doors had been frozen. But Highway 231 was Ok, so we didn’t give up our plan. When we were going to back to Troy, it was starting to snow and the road was frozen soon. It just liked skating even though the speed only 35 miles per hour on our way to Troy. I am dying now in retrospect. Driving in such a bad weather is really dangerous!

At the second day, when I got up in the morning, I felt the earth has turned to white. All of the things in my view were covered with snow. That was the happiest day in this week. We went skating and skiing on campus and had a snowball fight at the quad. So many beautiful pictures are in my camera and cell phone now. Although I met a snowstorm in New York City this winter, I didn’t have fun in the snow because of freezing cold.

“In Alabama, where freezing rain made driving perilous, at least five people were killed in weather-related traffic accidents Tuesday, state Department of Public Safety spokesman Sgt. Steve Jarrett said”, “"The weather right now, the temperatures and the wind chill, if you step out of your car, are very dangerous”. Although I drove to Montgomery this week, I advise all of you not to drive in such a bad weather. Safety first!