~May Your Light Shine :D~

Friday, September 28, 2007

You know when you were young(like maybe about 5 years old) and you kept complaining to your parents, "The weather so hot!" when its scorching, and your parents, as the typical chinese do, reply, "Stop complaining! Complain, complain, complain! Learn to appreciate what you have." They themselves are clearly sweating profusely yet somehow refuse to admit that the weather is driving them crazy. Since they kept quiet about it, I used to think that I should as well.

But then a few years ago, when my knowledge span increased dramatically following the influx of TV programmes and technology, I came up with the excuse of, "We're chinese. We weren't made for this weather." I know for sure my ancestors did NOT come from Southeat Asia where the weather was tropical all year round, and hence, being born of their blood, i often consider myself unfit and unadapted for this weather. I know it doesn't make a lot of sense, because humans can adapt very well can't they? We're HIGHLY SPECIALIZED, so to speak. Well then, tell me, how am I supposed to practise Chinese traditions like drinking hot tea when the temperature is enough to boil the water itself? Exaggerating of course, and not that I like Chinese Tea.

Digressing, once you say "I don't like to drink Chinese Tea", people assume you hate being Chinese, because China is also famous for their tea, and how can you dislike your own culture? Excuse me, I said I don't like the TASTE of Chinese Tea, it doesn't mean I don't like the art of Chinese Tea itself.

And after that they usually shake their heads forlornly and go, "Ahh the greatness of Western Influence..."(Or something like that since I don't know how to directly translate it from Chinese). You know, some people have the perception that the West is full of bad influence which pulls the Chinese away from our rich culture and traditions. But that's not very true. I mean, every society has their own faults. We're not uptopia, we can never be because it's not possible. But every race definitely has their strengths. Take the Europeans with their appreciation for art, we don't have such passion in Singapore(frankly speaking, I wish we had). Take the Japanese who dress daringly and have the courage to start new trends, Singaporeans don't even dare to walk down Orchard in a hat.

And who are we to say that the West has influenced us negatively? They invented electricity, they invented vehicles. They taught us architecture so complex so that we could build our infrastructure. And rather than be grateful, we start picking on really small nitty gritty things like, "Oh the people are SO kai fang. They have a bad effect on our youngsters." In my humble opinion, and as a 'youngster', I find that if the teenagers don't have the brains to distinguish right from wrong it is their own fault. They didn't have to learn those bad habits, but they chose to.

You want us to keep traditions? Fine then, tell me first, what is our Chinese traditional costume? The Koreans have their Hanboks, the Japanese their Kimonos. What do we have? Cheongsams? I DO NOT acknowledge the Cheongsam as the Chinese traditional costume. Why? For the simple reason that 500 years ago, no one would dare to walk down the street in the figure hugging tight silk dress that shows off every curve, not to mention baring both arms and legs with a slit down the side. It looks traditional, no doubt, but it isn't.

The correct Chinese traditional costume, I believe, should be those you see in the Chinese dramas where there are emperors and waring states. It comprises of mostly belts, sashes, thin coats, and lots of diamante hair jewellery. THAT IS OUR TRADITIONAL COSTUME. I feel so sad for our race, because if I ever meet a person from another race, I can never be proud of a traditional costume because I never really had a proper one.

My Kitchen blogged at Friday, September 28, 2007

May your light shine...
in the darkness...