Alumnus celebrates culture and community of Lunar New Year
Winston Sih is a journalist and television host contributing to a variety of media outlets including Citytv, CTV News, Yahoo! and MoneySense. He is a journalism and media lecturer at The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University.
As a Canadian born in Hong Kong and raised in a metropolitan city like Toronto, I was privileged to be surrounded by so many vibrant and diverse backgrounds. It was around me growing up, through my time at Toronto Metropolitan University, and in my everyday life today.
It took me time to appreciate the beauty of living in a place where we can celebrate our different cultural traditions throughout the year, and one of my favourite times is Lunar New Year.
I enjoy observing traditional Lunar New Year practices, like eating fish for prosperity, longevity noodles for happiness, and fruit for fullness and wealth, while creating new memories with my close friends. The beauty of these traditions is that they can evolve; we maintain some while others become bigger and better reflections of how we observe our cultures. I learned many of these traditions when I returned to Hong Kong in 2018 for the first time since immigrating to Canada.
Most importantly, it is an opportunity to come together with friends and family, and to celebrate togetherness after a particularly difficult few years.
Winston Sih with Citytv’s Cynthia Mulligan at the 2019 Yee Hong Dragon Ball fundraiser, the largest Lunar New Year celebration of its kind in North America.
One local organization I love working with is the Yee Hong Community Wellness Foundation (external link, opens in new window) , a wonderful group that provides terrific and critical care for seniors in the GTA. Each year, they throw a fantastic gala fundraiser called the Dragon Ball (external link, opens in new window) , and for several years, I have had the honour of hosting the event. Last year, like everything else, it was held virtually, but this weekend, on Saturday, Jan. 21, we are bringing it back in person at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. I am thrilled to be taking part once again.
Left: A traditional Lunar New Year feast can include (from bottom left, clockwise) roast duck, noodles, dumplings, shiitake mushrooms, and sweet sesame-rice balls — foods representing long life, prosperity and good luck. Top right: Winston’s canine friend Harley wears the festive Lunar New Year colours of red and gold, which symbolize happiness and prosperity. Bottom right: Sweets can include pomelo and dragon fruit alongside egg custard tarts. The Cantonese word for pomelo has a similar sound to the word prosperity, and holds a place of honour at traditional Lunar New Year feasts.
For me, Lunar New Year means a colourful, fresh start. A fresh start for family, for friends, for work, for health and for community. It’s the togetherness that makes it one of my favourite times of year, bound by foods that underscore the importance of reflection, growth and healing.
We don’t get many moments to take a pause to reflect, so for those celebrating, Happy New Year!
Throughout the year, we honour the celebrations that our alumni and friends observe. Want to share your special holiday traditions? (google form) Let us know! (external link, opens in new window)