Head Day

First morning wishes to my readers:
Uống nủớc nhớ nguồn (drinking water from a spring, remember the source of it);

Ăn quả nhớ kẻ trồng cây (eating fruit, remember the person who planted the tree);

Chim có ổ, ngủời có tông, cay có rể, nủớc có nguồn (It is natural that the bird has its nest, the man has his clan, the plant has its root, the water has its source.)

Tết is all about playing firecrackers. I am guilty of that. Loud explosive stuff sometimes thrills me. Though, I try my best to keep traditions: (1) tidy up the house before Tết; (2) visit friends and relatives, giving them greetings for healthier and wealthier in the coming year. Thank goodness for rechargeable phone cards! (3) Finally, a visit to a Buddhist monastery. This is to pay respect for the ancestors and remember beloved ones' lost. This one is tough, but instead of talking about beloved ones’ lost, I can tell you about a Buddhist temple I visited right here in the DC area!

It’s Chùa Giác-Hoàng, a Vietnamese zen/pure land temple, also called the Buddhist Congregational Church of America. I find the name a bit conflicting, but what do I know about nameology to comment. The temple stands out amid the neighboring houses. Right across the street is a couple of evangelical churches, and the whole block is filled with really really nice residential homes. The building has dark brown roof with arches at the four corners. Immediately entering the front yard, there’s a large white statue of Kwan Yin (Quan Âm) in the middle. She is holding a water pitcher pointing downward as if pouring water into the fountain. Although, the fountain with lotus is not there anymore, probably due to the winter maintenance and the risk of abuse from my silly cohorts, tsk tsk *head shake*. Right in front of the temple on the patio is a smiling Buddha (symbol of Good Luck) on the right and on the left is a liger (no I’m sorry…a white statue of a mythical beast that guard the house from demons).

Anyhow, at Giao Thừa (New Year’s Eve), my companions (K,C,M,T,T,K) and I went to this temple to seek lộc/ linh xâm or fortune reading. A couple of friends had other things in mind, such as cua gái (flirting). I didn’t get lộc, partly because the crowd was massive and violent. Instead, I hung out in the archway watching the dragon dance and firecrackers. It was short-lived because the horde was unforgiving. When the crowd starts to diffuse, I light a stick of incense and bow my head and pray to Quan Âm. I dunno why I did that. I had never done such rituals, except when I was three (!) with my beloved grandma. Holy crap, I’m on my way to hit rock bottom. I never bow to statues!

After two hours of unsuccessfully getting a fortune reading and phone numbers from hot men, I insist that we leave because the authorities and sirens are wailing nearby. NQ informed me the next day that there was a fight there, once again *head shake*. Instead of going to my folk’s home, I hung out at Chi Hoa's house and drink myself 'til dawn. The next day (or that same day), I gave Buzz-cut nephew a hefty li xi (monetary gift in a red envelop), one to Quibbling niece and another to Gorgeous-eyes nephew. Their grandmother (mother’s side) ask if I could start a trust fund account for the kids, where I give them $50/each (that’s $150) monthly into the account so that they can have money available by age 18 (that’s $21,600 for Gorgeous-eye alone! *sigh*). I smiled and looked at my crappy shoes and nodded silently. Did she not get the memo that I was on the verge of hitting rock bottom!? I’m sure she means well for the kids, but I’ll have to pass. I love them, but this is asking a bit much for me. Sorry, someday, but not today.

I wanna go kayaking to the end of the horizon, wheee!

We’re still celebrating New Year, so drop by with a red envelop, haha. Thank goodness the Year of the Cock is over! Now how about them red envelops?