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HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR...
To our Bobbleheads,
Happy Year of the Ox!
Aptly, this prompts us to celebrate resilience, determination, dependability, and strength -- all characteristics you've lent us in ways we can't even fully articulate. We truly, truly mean it when we say: thank you for sharing your stories, your calculations, your observations. We've cried, gushed, discussed them at length with each other. Thank you, thank you, thank you for letting us experience the world the way you do. We are better people for it.
We hope in the past year we've earned the trust you so generously give us every day, and the compassion and encouragement you so freely give each other. At every corner, every unexpected circumstances, you've literally given us the courage and encouragement to try something new, to cope as well as we can. To say we've gone through trial by fire together is a feeble understatement. We've had to process A LOT as a community, and while it was part of our vision to create a meaningful collective, we also... didn't think we'd be tested so intensely and overwhelmingly, again and again. Thank you for your grace, your transparency, and most of all, your continued participation in the making of Bobblehaus. We feel good about this because of you. We hope you do, too.
With love forever, and many wishes for a better new year,
Ophelia, Abi, and Leona
...WHAT'RE YOU HONORING THIS YEAR?
2021 Year of the Ox...as told by our BOBBLEHAUS contributors from 11 different countries, across 5 continents
MIRANDA: This year I am honouring my healing process. I am grateful to be healthy and alive, but I've realised I've not been living, only surviving. So this year I want to honour my emotional wellbeing and focus on healing the wounds I've let fester for too long. My whole family has been focusing on healing together and it's the most beautiful thing to see.
ANGEL: When the pandemic forced the entire world into an online setting, I had a hard time adjusting and maintaining all the connections I had. To this day, I get this unshakable feeling that my friends feel like I've neglected them, when in fact, they mean the world to me. In 2021, I am honoring my relationships - stepping up and taking the extra mile to preserve and strengthen bonds with friends, while also seeking out opportunities to connect with others more. I am excited for both the Netflix parties and Covidopoly games, as well as the intentional conversations and philosophical discussions that are to come.
CHLOE: This year I'm honoring peace. Being able to find a sense of peace during such tumultuous times is difficult, but I have a new sense of appreciation for the quiet and underwhelming. For too long, I took for granted the beauty of simply lying in bed and reading a good book or the warmth found in FaceTiming a friend I haven't talked to in a while. I am now leaning into the peace found in the folds of my life and making my self-care a priority.
LIZ: In many ways last year, I lost myself. A steady blend of anxiety, burnout, and imposter syndrome culminated into a devastating spearhead, which I have resolved to challenge head-on. This year, I am honouring my body's intuition; my relationship to the lunar cycle; the power of connection, joy, and laughter; and the spirit of resilience.
OPHELIA: I want to honor all the women that have inspired me to become who I am today - my mother, my friends and my mentors.
EVAN: This year I am honoring my time. Until recently I finally realized that time is the single most valuable and fair resource - everyone has the same amount every day. With time you create possibility. Anything is possible but if you don’t put enough time, it would never occur in the first place, no matter the result. We only live twice, and the second starts when we realizes we have just one. I’m very much aware how much time I waste and my mentality finally come around to be mature enough to make the decision, no more of it. I said to myself: Right Now! Today!
WEN: I'm honoring tradition this year. Like many others, I am unable to spend Lunar New Year with my family and loved ones back home. I hope to — if lockdown restrictions are lifted, introduce my friends here to my culture and traditions and celebrate it with them, and creating new traditions of our own. Would I still be expecting red envelope money? Yes.
LYDIA: I'm trying to honor my own and my communities' resilience and our need for rest and healing!
RONNIE: This year I am going to honor all of the little things there are to be grateful for.
KYLA: I want to honor my independence and ambitiousness as a young female by going about my life in a more passionate way, as well as giving more credit to my emotions and creative endeavors.
ABI: I'm going to honor time spent getting to know myself.
ALINA: The celebration of Tết each year in my Vietnamese American household for Lunar New Year is one typically celebrated alongside close relatives and family friends to manifest a year of health and prosperity. Although our current situation poses certain barriers to the normal rituals, I choose to continue to honor my ancestors and the emergence of the spring season through the cultural traditions passed down by my parents. This year I will practice the customs of cleaning the house, adorning our altar with fresh fruit and flowers, and performing a ritual where incense sticks are burned to invite the spirits of our ancestors to join us in celebration. Tết has always been a holiday for which I believed set the tone for the rest of the year and so with that I will earnestly pray for one which yields peace, health and wellness.
JOYCE: This season, I am honoring my extended family. As I spend my last year abroad, in the home country of my parents, I'm grateful for the company of aunts, uncles, and cousins who have helped and supported me throughout this journey. Though being away for so long has made me homesick, I've realized that Taiwan has truly become my second home.
CASEY: It's my first time being home for the lunar new year in four years, so this year i am happy to finally be back for the holiday. we'll be gathering together in our home for dinner to begin the new year, as we always do, and we tend to have 2-3 more meals together in this week as well. i'll be honoring our family traditions by finally being here and being able to help out with set up, cleaning, and of course, eating. i'll finally also be able to go to the local temple to pray for good luck this year, so returning to that tradition as well!
ELAINE: As I move into 2021, I hope to honour a new perspective through a creative and opportunist eye. I will continue to cherish the little moments with my friends and family. Though some experiences may be unfortunate, I want to be able to transform them into vehicles for creativity to create broader connections. Most importantly, to take it easy and enjoy the year ahead!
SOFIA: I am honoring my humanity. This year I've experienced a lot of feelings that I'd always been uncomfortable facing: homesickness, inadequacy, loneliness. And even though it's been a hard time, this year I want to honor those parts of me that aren't perfect, that aren't always happy, and acknowledge that that's all fine, because I'm human and that's all me.
CAROLYN: Since I have not been able to spend LNY with my family for the past few years, I will continue to try to build my own traditions with friends here in New York. For me and some of my friends who have not seen family in over a year, LNY will be a chance for us to share food and stories so that we can feel at home together. I'll be honoring my parents, family, culture, and since it's the year of the ox, myself too :)
ATHENA: This year, I am honouring the presence of others' voices. The world can only be a home with windows to let the light in, and if windows are the eyes to the soul - then the proliferation of diverse voices serves as a way to let more sunshine into the home. As we all heal, recover and learn to move on, I hope that their own strong voice echoes within them, too.
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