【国旗下讲话】中国的传统节日

Good morning, dear teachers, boys and girls. I am YangZicheng from Class Nine, Grade Seven. It's a great honor for me to be here and give the speech. Today my topic is Traditional festivals of China.

China is a country with a history of over 5000 years. During its long rule, many festivals have been celebrated and some we even celebrate today.

Falling on the first day of the first month of the Chinese Lunar calendar, the Chinese Lunar New Year is also known as the spring festival. China has a unique culture showing deligence and intelligence. Different from western holidays, the Chinese New Year is not a religious holiday, nor is it a wish to get any kind of present without hard work. It is a simple exclamation of joy, a wish for happiness and a well-deserved party. On this day, we decorate our houses with couplets and lanterns. On the couplets, words like "wealth through diligence" and "long-lived people and rich harvests" are usually written down. In contrast, at Christmas, western people write a wish list, and they believe Santa the God will fulfill their wish. The difference between Chinese people and westerners is seen in the way to express longing for joy on these two most important festivals, likely due to their economic development. China has a long history of being an agricultural civilization, while most of the western countries have been hunting societies. The Chinese believe that contentment is realized through hard work.  The western people on the other hand, think that happiness and luck are given by God.

 An upcoming Chinese festival is Ching Ming. It is at the beginning of spring.   Traditionally, on this day, Chinese eat cold food because they are forbidden to use fire to cook. The most important ceremony of Ching Ming is to visit the tombs of ancestors and to remember their loved ones. They believe the new fires after Ching Ming will bring them new hope and new life. This ceremony is also related with the agricultural society and their hopes to get harvest on their land. It also shows that the Chinese value their families and respect their ancestors. A festival similar to Ching Ming in western countries is Easter. It is a day to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Easter is similar to Ching Ming, meaning a starting of new life. Different from Ching Ming however, on this day, western children look for eggs and bunnies that are hidden by their elders. This religious ceremony also indicates the traditional society of western countries.  

China has a lot of festivals related from beautiful stories, and there are still more I haven't talked about. Even with the passing of time and the changing of centuries, we mustn't orget about our traditional festivals, because they are the identity of the Chinese people, and the essence of our being.

It's our responsibility to pass on the valuable culture, so why not come and take part in our English Week of "Spread Chinese Traditional culture". Anyone is welcome.

 Thank you.