The Year of the Ox has Begun

It's the Year of the Ox! 新蔫快樂 to all our friends!  The Lunar New Year has officially begun with deserted streets and closed up shops. Everyone has 'gone home.' Much like our Thanksgiving tradition of being home with family, Taiwanese will shut down operations a week before the new year, and travel "home" to be with parents or grandparents. Depending on time off availability from work, they might just get a few days off, or more commonly, a week to ten days. It's the single most important and beloved holiday of the year.

Courtesy of flickr - Nicholas Chou

And this year it is the Ox. The Chinese zodiac cycles through 12 animals, one each year, with related symbolism that is supposed to be a key indicator of what kind of personality you will have. The Ox - hardworking, honest, low key and never looks for personal praise. They think logically and make great leaders. 

Are you an Ox?  According to Chinese tradition, you are if you were born in one of these years: 1925; 1937; 1949; 1961; 1973; 1985; 1997; 2009; 2021

An "ox", by the way, is anything of the Bovidae family.  It can be a cow, bull, steer, ox, water buffalo, etc. But usually it is depicted here as a water buffalo.

Let the celebrations begin!

The Grand Hyatt Hotel in Taipei hosts an annual lion dance performance. The senior missionaries attended together and then were treated by the mission president to an amazing buffet lunch.

The dancing lion is very popular with the children - they all wanted to pet him. No wonder - he spews out candy!

A child rests on his mother's shoulders to get a better look at the dancing and leaping golden lion.

 This one spews out candy too! 

The pink cherry blossoms are out in full swing. People LOVE to photograph the blossoms. Wherever there are blossoms, you can find numerous photographers below their branches.

 

Food, of course, is an integral part of the Lunar New Year traditions. Lots of food. One meal was at a member's home who graciously fed 13 of us today, having already fed missionaries yesterday, and they came again today just as we were leaving - to be fed again. Members and friends will invite the missionaries to their homes for meals all throughout the Lunar New Year holiday. Some of the missionaries have up to 22 meal invitations - breakfast, lunch and dinner!  It's considered a "bringer of good luck" if you host family and good friends. 

Our host prepared over 12 dishes for our lunch today - everything completely homemade from scratch. Dumplings, thin pancakes to fill with thin slices of beef, vegetables dishes with pork, chicken, peppers, celery, cilantro, tofu, tomatoes and black rubbery fungus. Soup with squid balls and Chinese radishes. Red rose apples filled with tuna salad (!!). We were already stuffed when she brought out dessert - and what a treat - it was a Western dessert!  Large cream puffs filled with slightly sweetened cream and fruit. It was the perfect touch. THEN she brought out the cheese cake - as American of a cheese cake as one would ever find - absolutely delicious! THEN she brought out the walnut-filled dates and jujubes! We could take in no more. THEN, the final drink - a pot filled with lotus seed and white snow fungus drink. Actually, it was very good - fungus and all.    

We have less than 7 weeks left.  

Soon this will be just a memory. 

Not sure we have significantly changed anyone's lives for the better. 

But one thing is for sure - our lives are better for having been here. 

Especially during this COVID time. 

We've seen the gentle, kind, good people of Taiwan do their part.

We've seen missionaries, through the coming and going of COVID-run exoduses, demonstrate their faith and courage amidst an uncertain future. 

We've been in touch with some of the over 80 Taiwan-bound missionaries who were re-routed to other missions - whose pictures are still lined up on the board - a silent testimony to their faith that they are indeed ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ - and will go wherever He calls, even if it's not to Taiwan. 

We have been so blessed by just being here. 

The Perfect Hike - Guanyin Mountain

It was one of those rare days - sunny (finally!), but comfortably cool. Clear skies and brilliant blue waters. No rain in the forecast. And it was a Saturday. The combination was perfect – time for a senior missionary hike!                                                                                             

The ancient dormant volcano with cupped peak beckoned. Guanying Mountain is a favorite scenic spot and we were about to find out why. Rising above the little town of Bali on the left bank of the Tamsui River, we started at the Lingyun Zen Temple, which was built in 1909. 

The Thousand-Hand Guanyin (the Bodhisattva of Compassion) marks a striking presence amidst the profusion of floral and food offerings.

From there the hiking trail began. Guanyin Mountain has a number of trails, but we just took two – the Yinghanling and Niuliaopu Trails – leading us up ten thousand stone steps to the magnificent peak. At least it seemed like ten thousand steps! Straight up with rarely a break, the trail was once used for training military police, and is nicknamed “Tough Guy Peak” to this day.

Along the way were fresh water stations. Buddhist volunteers regularly haul water up the mountain to fill the canisters – their way to bless the weary travelers. 

Floral and monetary offerings to Guanyin who

 blesses the drinking water. Caterpillar included. 

Making our way to the top of the mountain staircase, we finally burst upon the reward of our labors - a 270-degree vista of the mouth of the Tamsui River, Tamsui on the right bank, and Bali on the left. The azure waters reflected the clarity of the sky overlooking the Tamsui River.

 

Leaving the stunning view, our knees then got a real workout as we took the stone-step path back down. Ferns, moss, bamboo, elephant ears, and all kinds of tropical foliage surrounded us. It was gorgeous.

Every once in a while there was a break in the thick vegetation, and you could see the view again from a lower angle.

We passed an orange orchard tucked away on the side of the mountain. Visitors are allowed to pick free oranges if they eat them on site, or they can pick some to take home for a good price. We stopped to taste some samples of kumquats, and bought some oranges for the trek home. Taiwan has many varieties of oranges and tangerines. Extremely sweet and juicy, these oranges turned shades of brown but the insides were amazing.

Kumquats, oranges and tangerines are especially significant for the upcoming Lunar New Year, representing good luck, happiness and abundance. A gift of these to your host or friend will always bring a smile.

I love the terraced mountain gardens tucked in and around each bend. Cabbage, onions, and all kinds of leafy greens are popular gardening items. Papaya trees grow naturally along the mountainside.  

We emerged from the forest at the rivers edge. The Left Bank walk meanders through parks and vendors and little shops renting bikes or buggies. 

The view from Bali looking across the river to Tamsui.

We took a ferry across the river. 

At Tamsui, we walked through Old Street and cut across a large outdoor market to make our way to Kooks - an American restaurant. 

The lunch was amazing. We were sore, exhausted, and glad to finally sit down. The food and milkshakes revived our spirits and were the perfect way to end the day. 

I heard it said once, and it might be true - 

senior missionaries have all the fun!

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Life is so much like a hike. The journey is hard, full of rocks and dirt, sweat and grit. A map and a path is all you have to show you the way. Friends are there to encourage you when it gets tough, to wait with you as you catch your breath along the side of the trail. The journey is made easier by the comradery. A guide might be there to show you the way, to walk the trail with you. You might have a metal rail to hold onto during especially steep trekking.

But you finally reach the top and it is utterly amazing. Suddenly you forget all your travails along the way. The view stretches out seemingly endlessly. 

Thus the coined phrases - "Stay on the path." "Hold to the rod." "I can do hard things." "Just do it."

I am convinced that in the end, regardless of how hard this mortal journey may be for people, the joys and glory and vision will far outweigh the suffering and the struggle. 

Life is so much like a hike.