Holiday mood

“我要趕著下班了，新年快樂！拜拜！” 早上起來看到 CC 用 Skype 写给我，查看后，那是马來西亞时间﹕2月5日5.59pm。我能体會 CC 下班回家過年的心情，想想去年的我不也是有这樣的心情嗎？那时接近新年，很期待最后一天下班的时刻，享受过四天（一般上）的新年假期。
新年是一家人團聚的大日子，除夕一起吃團圓飯。我的家人傳續年除夕吃火鍋，我通常是在哥哥家或乾妈家吃團圓飯。
今年的除夕，我原本計划在家用飯鍋當火鍋，也跟著傳統，Steve 和我吃團圓飯，但后來被佛光山的佛友们邀请，除夕在佛寺有大團圓吃火鍋。啊！我想今年的團圓飯是不一樣的！
今天收到一封從马來西亞寄來的賀年卡，會是那一位有心人（因現今马來西亞華人都是寄 e-card）？是 YL，謝謝！

“I have the urge to leave work and go home. Happy Chinese New Year! Bye-bye!” This morning, I read this message from a friend, CC, who wrote to me on Skype. I checked the time; it was Feb 5, 5.59pm Malaysia time. I understand CC’s mood, waiting to go home for the New Year holiday. Didn’t I have the same mood last year? When it’s close to the New Year, I waited to leave work the day before the Chinese New Year holiday. Normally, the holiday is four days.

Chinese New Year is a big festival when all family members gather together and have a meal, called ‘tuan yuan fan’ in Chinese, on New Year’s Eve. My family follows custom and has a hot pot meal. On New Year’s Eve, I usually went to my brother’s house or my god-mother’s house.

I want to follow Chinese custom here, too, and I thought to use the rice cooker as a hot pot to have ‘tuan yuan fan’ with Steve. However, we were invited by our ‘Fo Guang Shan’ Buddhist friends to have a gathering with hot pot ‘tuan yuan fan’ at the temple this New Year’s Eve. Ah! I think this year ‘tuan yuan fan’ will be different from those in the past years!