Mount Shasta gallery welcomes the Year of the Tiger with new painting, free gifts
Editor's note: The following feature was submitted to the Mt. Shasta Area Newspapers by Mei and Stan Drucker of Mount Shasta.
The Chinese New Year begins next Tuesday. The Chinese New Year, also called the Spring Festival, is the traditional start of the lunar new year. It is a celebration of new beginnings and the welcoming of spring and the planting season. The Spring Festival lasts for two weeks, ending with the Lantern Festival in which hundreds of candlelight lanterns are released into the sky. Each Chinese New Year, we celebrate with family gatherings and celebrations, lots of good food and gifts.
Legend has it that during the Qin Dynasty over 2,000 years ago, the Jade Emperor challenged all animals in the kingdom to a great race. Whoever arrived at his palace first would win his favor. The tiger thought he would win the race, but the cunning rat and the workhorse ox snuck in ahead of him. Thus, the tiger is the third animal in the Chinese zodiac.
This Chinese New Year is the Year of the Water Tiger. In 2020, the Year of the Rat, it was about survival. Last year, 2021, the Year of the Ox, it was about anchoring ourselves in a new reality.
This year, 2022, the Year of the Tiger, will be about big changes. This will be a year of risk taking, adventure, enthusiasm for ourselves and others, generosity and social progress.
The Water Tiger is associated with masculine and active energy, rapid change, sudden disruptions and strong emotions. The Water Tiger is a symbol of strength, bravery, confidence, power, optimism and passion. The water element for this Chinese New Year amplifies the vital life force, health, wealth, abundance, prosperity, humanitarianism and the essence of the Tiger spirit.
Mei has recently created a beautiful, new painting to celebrate the Year of the Tiger. Due to our ongoing concerns about the coronavirus, Mei Drucker Art Gallery & Gift Shoppe will not be have the annual Chinese New Year celebration.
This year, Mei will provide a free gift to everyone who stops by Mei Drucker Art Gallery & Gift Shoppe at 418 N. Mount Shasta Blvd. in Mount Shasta during the Chinese New Year from Feb. 1 to Feb. 15. We hope to see all of you during this joyous celebration of the Year of the Water Tiger.