Festival of the First Day

TẾT, short for Tết Nguyên Đán in Vietnamese is the “Festival of the First Day,” which means the festival of the first day of the new year and is the Vietnamese name for the Lunar New Year. This year is the year of the dragon. The dragon represents power, nobility, honor, integrity, and success for our people. It was quite a special time for us as we came together here at the campus, young and old, Asian, Anglo, African, and Hispanic Sisters enjoyed participating in our Lunar New Year celebration which was held in the Villa dining room on Sunday, February 11th.

The Lunar New Year celebration has been part of our multicultural festivities within the VDM campus. Over the last decade, the Vietnamese Sisters have worn the traditional Vietnamese dress as well as non-Vietnamese Sisters who also enjoyed wearing the dresses in honor of the Vietnamese culture and in support of Asians throughout the world. Over the years we have enjoyed the Asian dance performed by the Vietnamese Sisters, which included both Vietnamese student Sisters and CCVI Sisters at the annual celebration of the Lunar New Year.This year, the year of the dragon, the dancing team consisted of all our CCVI Sisters who come from various parts in the world including the Congo, Guatemala, Kenya, and Vietnam. The dancers looked beautiful and elegant in the traditional Vietnamese dress. Perhaps deep inside our CCVI Sisters who performed was the DNA of the international Holy Spirit. They are always so comfortable with embracing other ethnic cultures and their wardrobes. During the performance, the Sisters freely and comfortably moved and gracefully gestured as they followed the rhythm of the Vietnamese music. Throughout the event I noticed the changes in our younger generation. It is easy for them to adapt to new cultures and embrace one another and their customs. The love within CCVI goes beyond the diverse cultures and ethnicities. What a gift we all have been given! Celebrations bring us together to enjoy one another’s presence and welcome each other’s ethnic foods while appreciating each other’s cultures. We are so blessed to be able to taste and enjoy the goodness of God through the many cultures that God has gifted to our Congregation – what a beautiful quality we share! Let us continue to encourage one another to celebrate other cultures, our customs, and the holidays of the Sisters.