Students cram into the ESL classroom for a Lunar New Year celebration. Room 5 is hardly built for large gatherings, but students enter anyway, weaving their way through the crowd to get to the middle, where a table of traditional Chinese and Japanese dishes beckons.
OVS Freshman James Yang and Sophomore Joe Zhao made rice cakes with brown sugar. James is happy that so many people wanted to try Chinese food and he shared a New Year’s tradition: “Don’t forget to take a shower tonight,” he said. “In Chinese tradition we take a shower this night to wash away the negative things of 2023.”
Another key tradition is returning home to spend the two weeks
of the Lunar New Year celebration with one’s family. Sadly, most students
cannot do so, but Sophomore Emily Yang feels at home during the celebration in Room 5.
“I feel like I’ve come back to China,” she said. “Like with my family. It’s so warm.”
Freshman Mike Jin feels similarly. “It’s the Chinese New Year now. I can’t stay at China with my family,” he said. “But having traditional food makes me feel good.”
Indeed, the celebration does feel like a family gathering. Loud conversations and shrieking laughter overlap the blasting of Chinese music through speakers.
Joe and Freshman Russel Zhuang play Chinese folk music, such as “Nan Wang Jin Xiao,” which is played at the end of every New Year’s Eve national concert.
Senior William Ramsay did not eat breakfast that morning, and he was very grateful for the delicious spread. “When I saw these dumplings, I was like oh shoot,” said William. “I gotta eat all of them.”
Devyn Reynolds, the ESL teacher, organized this event to acknowledge the holidays of the diverse student body, and she sees this year’s success “[The class] put a lot of work into it so I think it’s great for them to see the student body embrace it,” she said.
Many people tried new foods for the first time that day. Zach Byars, an OVS teacher who hates hard-boiled eggs, tried a traditional Chinese food. Senior Allyanna Westcott brought in tea eggs, which are hard-boiled eggs flavored with soy sauce and various spices. Surprisingly, Mr. Byars declared “These are the best eggs I have ever had,” and then prompted whoever came in to try this new food.
Junior Tallulah Bell said her favorite dish was the rice cake and red bean dish made by Freshman Renji Hanai and Sophomores Kai Ishikawa and Haruna Watanabe. “I didn’t really like it in the past, but I really enjoyed this dish,” said Tallulah.
Then, as quickly as it started, the warm gathering came to an end with the end of F Block. Students put lids on now-empty containers, folded the large gold tablecloth, and put tables back for the next class. However, if you missed this year’s celebration, make sure to come next year!