Gung hei fat choy!

Gung hei fat choy! (or, if you speak Mandarin, as most Chinese do,"Xin nian yu kuai!"). February 18, 2007 marked the official arrival of the Year of the Boar.

Contrary to popular belief, the common Cantonese greeting gung hei fat choy doesn't translate directly to "Happy New Year" - that would be sun nien fai lok. Instead, gung hei fat choy is a wish that you may become prosperous, a nice thing to wish friends, family and neighbours at the beginning of a new year.

People born in the Year of the Boar are believed to be kind, trustworthy and, above all, generous.

Unfortunately, fortune-tellers' prognostications for this Year of the Boar are much less promising than the Boar Child's positive characteristics would lead one to expect. Let's hope they're off this year.


Once again this year Canada Post issued special stamps marking the Chinese New Year, a nod to the deep roots Chinese-Canadians have in this country and the fundamental role they played in building it.

Naturally the occasion called for, among many other celebrations, a huge pot luck at work where our Chinese friends cooked and we gorged. One of the very significant benefits of the job.

And gung hei fat choy to you all.

ronnie