Many Asian Americans in the St. Louis region are enjoying their Lunar New Year by attending festive dinner parties, dining in decorative restaurants, handing out red envelopes with cash in them to children and gathering with friends at community centers.
Others have welcomed family throughout the new year — which ends Saturday — from parts of Asia to their homes to help create lasting memories during this special holiday.
James Zeng’s parents flew to St. Louis a few weeks ago from southern China to celebrate the new year and his father’s 72nd birthday.
“My dad was born in the year of the dragon, in 1952, so every 12 years is the year of the dragon,” Zeng said. “We're going to have a very big party for him, and then this is another big year to celebrate, since we haven't been together for a long time.”
The last time Zeng’s family celebrated his father’s birthday together was 14 years ago. While at a new year program at Richmond Heights Memorial Library on Feb. 4, Zeng said that Lunar New Year — also known as Chinese New Year and Spring Festival — is a time to bond with family, share meals and party.
Zeng said he loves seeing his parents teach his children how to make dumplings and eggplant dishes, while the rest of his family watch Chinese soap operas and familiar dragon and lion shows on television, all cultural activities that remind him of his homeland.
For many people like Zeng, the year of the dragon is an exhilarating year to commemorate because it is one of the most auspicious Chinese zodiac signs. In addition to China, many Asian countries that follow the lunisolar calendar share most of China's 12 zodiac signs, which includes the dragon.
“The year of the dragon represents prosperity, and if you have big goals, this is your time to achieve it,” Zeng said. “If someone wants to find a job, hopefully they can get a job.”
Preserving traditions
About 60 people living in the region from mainland China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and other parts of Asia simultaneously chanted and bowed inside Fo Guang Shan St. Louis Buddhist Center to pay homage to the buddhas during its Lunar New Year Thousand Buddhas Dharma service.
Red lanterns are sprawled across the walls of the Bridgeton temple and tiny dragons are noticeable at the entrance of the worship center. Many parishioners came to the temple on Feb. 11 to bask in the celebration in a more customary way this year.
Venerable Jue Huang has been co-leading the worship services for a decade now. She wants to preserve not only Chinese culture but other Asian traditions as well, because she knows many members come from different Asian backgrounds and commemorate Lunar New Year slightly differently. She makes a point to do so, since the east Asian population in St. Louis is so small.
“This is very important, especially because we are celebrating the traditions too, so that brings back the cultures,” Huang said. “American Chinese are like a minority here in St. Louis, we hope that our children can still feel it and know more about the culture.”
Huang is especially excited this year because it has been one of the larger new year services since the coronavirus pandemic shut down establishments in March 2020. She hopes to see many families expand this year, since children who are born during the year of the dragon are considered lucky.
Lunar New Year celebrations are not new to the region. The Missouri Historical Society holds records of some of the earliest documented Chinese New Year celebrations.
Min Liu, a volunteer with the society’s Chinese American Collecting Initiative, found a St. Louis Globe-Democrat article dated Feb. 12, 1877, where a St. Louisan, who spoke native Chinese, posed as a tour guide through the Chinese community for the reporter. Jack Silvers, the local, escorted the journalist to a local laundromat in Chinatown to speak with the owner about his new year customs while in the city.
In the 20th century, gatherings became larger and news reports say Chinese St. Louisans began to pop fireworks, play trumpets and wave Chinese flags to usher in the new year.
Some of the reporters wrote about the celebration without in-depth details because from their eyes it was similar to American new year customs, Liu said.
“I think that's how the New Year is celebrated everywhere,” she said. “They're writing it from the perspective of someone who hasn't seen the traditions.”
Future celebrations
As people lined up to get plates of rice, vegetable stir fry, bok choy and vegetable curry in the basement of the Buddhist center, people talked about their new year plans with friends. For some, celebrating without family in the St. Louis area during Lunar New Year is tough.
Roger Hsieh gathered with friends to ring in the new year. The Taiwanese salesman said he did not party too hard because there are not many major celebrations in the area to attend and he had to go to work. He has been living in St. Louis since 1996.
“If I was in Taiwan, I would eat and sleep,” he said. “I'm here, so I got to work.”
He is trying to make the best out of every party invitation and attend any programs he can, but he said Lunar New Year in St. Louis does not compare to Taiwan's.
“Everybody works over here, [over there] everything is shut down, you don't see people in Taipei.” Hsieh said. “You feel it’s a new year from people on TV, but over here it’s an ordinary day.”
He is hopeful that in the coming years festivities will increase around the region to help Asian St. Louisans feel as if they were back home.
Karviva beverage owner Angela Zeng wishes St. Louis had parades and various parties around town to keep the Asian new year culture alive. She tries to preserve her heritage through her children. She helped her husband make over 100 dumplings that they ate throughout the holiday.
“When you do the Thanksgiving cooking as a whole family, you use it as a moment for you to bond with each other, that's the tradition when I was in China,” she said. “We do a little bit of dumpling making, but it's more about cooking many dishes. You have to have certain kinds of dishes on your table.”
Angela Zeng said she incorporates various bites because they will bring goodness to her family over the course of the year. As for others, she hopes business owners will see an increase in profits and people will show respect to each other and live in harmony during times of war.
“I hope businesses are heading in the right direction, because I'm a small business owner, so there's always daily challenges,” she said. “I'm also hoping that in the year of the dragon … people around us will hopefully be able to live with each other with lots of love and compassion.”
