It's the Lunar New Year at our Mandarin dual-language public school in Los Angeles.
Red lanterns line the school courtyard, swaying gently in the breeze. 紅燈籠高掛，迎接新年—symbols of prosperity, luck, renewal. The air hums with anticipation as the reverberating drums signal the arrival of the 舞獅。 The lion dancers—左搖右擺，步步生風—weave through the crowd, their movements bold and alive, while children squeal in delight. Just beyond, a face-changer performer lifts a fan, and in an instant—bian lian變臉，一瞬之間，面貌全非。 Gasps ripple through the crowd. The magic of 新年 is here.
At the entrance of our bilingual school, a dragon winds its way across the wall—長龍蜿蜒—each scale a paper plate, each plate painted by a child’s hands. 龍，祥瑞之兆，承載著好運與力量。 Some plates are carefully detailed, others wildly colorful, but together they conjure something greater than any single piece—獨木不成林，眾志成城。 The children point, searching for their own contributions—我的呢？在哪裡？—their faces lighting up with pride. Pride that connects their art to ancient beliefs, passed through generations that are ever enduring—承傳千年的文化，如今就在眼前。
For those in the school community who celebrate, these moments whisper: 你屬於這裡，你的文化被看見，被珍惜—you belong here; you are seen and known. For those experiencing it for the first time, it’s an open door—請進，請欣賞，請體會。 And for the parents standing at the edges, hearts warmed by the sense of nostalgia felt deep in their bones, it is evidence that their culture is not just something that they leave at home—文化不僅是歷史的回音，更是今日鮮活的篇章。It is relevant. It's alive.
Some schools acknowledge culture. Others bring it to life. When a school chooses the latter—when it lets 紅燈籠照亮走廊 red lanterns fill its hallways, when it 讓紙盤龍化為傳承的橋樑 turns a paper plate project into a majestic symbol of belonging, when it 讓孩子親身體驗而非只是在書本上讀到 allows tradition to take root—it does more than just teach about a holiday. It affirms that culture is not just something to be studied. It is something felt. 它做的不僅是教授一個節日，而是賦予一種認同，讓文化真正被感受、被理解、被珍惜。 And today, in this space filled with light and movement and squeals of joy, our Chinese heritage is alive and I couldn't be more grateful. 新年快樂，萬事如意！