“Your pride for your country should not come after your country becomes great; your country becomes great because of your pride in it.” according to Idowu Koyenikan. In other words, people should be proud of themselves because they are the country, the culture and the tradition. If people are proud of their country, their country will be great. The United States is a country of immigrants, the largest groups of immigrants come from Asia and Latin America. The U. S. has been enriched by people from all the world through the years. Even though different countries have different holiday traditions, China, Mexico, and the US must combine their cultures into one.
China is one of the oldest civilizations in the world with 5000 years of traditional culture. This is proven by multiple sources. According to an article, The Oldest Living Civilization “China has the longest continuous history of any country in the world-3500 years of written history.” Archaeologist found the language, wall painting, and antiques at least before 3500 years ago in China. Before 3500 years, who creative Huaxia ethnicity called the Han people. The Han people created some popular legend affect people until now.
According to Chinese mythology, Nian is terrible that eats everything and attack on the village when the winter would turn into spring. People want to Nian leave them and go back to sea, but no one can beat it. Finally, people discover Nian was afraid of red and the higher sound. So, people who would put some red paper and writer some bless word on the window and door and set off firecrackers on every New Year called the Spring festival that is a traditional habit in China. People make a great meal and wear new clothes. After dinner, the adults would play mahjong and poker, the kids would watch TV. The Spring festival is the longest holiday in China. people will celebrate the whole week. The way is same as the American New Year.
Mexico is a multicultural country. According to the articles, ‘The Olmec civilization’ and ‘Olmec’ Mexico are home to two of the world’s largest civilizations that are descendants of the Olmecs, which is often called the ‘first civilization of Mesoamerica,’ according to ‘Olmec people, art Olmec. ‘ the Aztecs and Mayan culture. As a result, Mexico is a country with more than 50 groups of indigenous people, which have enriched the culture and activities in Mexico. Before the conquest, the native people were the Aztecs, who celebrated the birth of god Huitzilopochtli on December. Huitzilopochtli means huitzilin, “hummingbird,” and opochtli, “left” in Nahuatl. He was the god of the sun and god of the war. The celebration of this god is celebrated from December 2nd to 21st according to ‘Mexicolore’. With the conquest of Mexico, the Spanish people brought the Catholicism and Christmas are celebrated in December as well.
In Mexico, the New Year starts on December six with Virgin Mary’s celebration, Jesus’ mother. The official day to perform Virgin Mary is on December 12, the average to celebrate her is six days before and two days after. The celebration of Jesus’ mother beings on December 6 because the Catholic church does six mass before the celebration. Because there are many communities in the village the priests cannot go to all of them in one day, there are two days after to honor Virgin Mary on December seven and eight. For this festivity, the main dish is the mole (red rice and chicken) in the state of Puebla.
In Mexico Christmas is celebrated by Catholic people with the company of their family and friends. On December 15 begins a tradition called Posadas, two children represent Mary and Joseph, the Jesus’ parents, who ask for a house in the village one night to rest and the next night they will leave. Children sing songs that tell the story of Jesus, and they have a little representation of Jesus’ birth in the manger. There are nine posadas, which are in a different house every night. The party for the celebration of Jesus’ birth is on December 24th almost at middle some minutes before 25th during two or three hours in total. The celebration for this holiday has an average for three days before and two days after of 24th. As the same reasons for the Virgin Mary’s activity, the church cannot go to all the celebrations in one day. In the posadas, the owners of the house, which the posada stays the night, give some tamales of mole or sweet tamales and champurrado, coffee or ponche. In the same night, the host of the posada gives aguinaldos, which are small bags with different kind of candies and fruits. When the posada is living the host offers coffee and pan dulce. For the celebration on December 24th, the special dish is a black mole with red rice and chicken as well. The special drink for this holiday is ponche, which is a drink made from different kinds of fruit.
After all these festivities, it comes to the New Year. It is a big party in different families and communities. In the cities is a little-modernized way to celebrate the New Year. The rich people or who have enough money have a big party with their families. They eat tamales and drink champurrado or ponche. In some homes, people eat turkey or pork meets as carnitas and alcohol drinks such as tequila and mezcal. Also, the Mexican people have the custom “to eat 12 grapes” each represents one wish, one month and one-midnight bell. This tradition comes from Spain according to “The 12 Lucky Grapes: A New Year’s Eve Tradition in Spain.” In the villages, the New Year ’s party it’s all night. It can be from a small family that celebrates the night together and has fun with the fireworks through which a group of two or three families decides to hold a party for almost everyone living in the city, hiring bands to play during all night. In the Downtown of the village, there is a mass at midnight. Practically all the downtown assist to this celebration. The fireworks start at the first tone of the bell of the clock. In the small towns of Puebla, there are typical dishes such as mole (with red rice, chicken, and tortillas), carnitas (with black beans, guacamole, sauce red and green, rice, habanero pepper, lemons, radishes, and tortillas), and mixiotes (which is made from different chilies, aromatic herbs (oregano, thyme, and laurel), and pork or chicken or beef, accompanied with rice, refried black beans, radishes, guacamole, and sauce green and red and tortillas). In the drinks are the same as the Christmas.
In the villages of Mexico, some families put a lam in the front door. They believe that the lamb calls the money. Other families put three or five pieces of aloe Vera tied with a red thread that means the protection of the house. The people from the villages clean their house on the New Year. Also, it is recommended to wear something new depending on what people want. For example, using underwear in color red to attract passion and love. The green represents prosperity and white peace. On the other hand, people in the town believe that the first day of the New Year is one of the most important days. For instances, if New Year day rains, people believe that most of the year will be raining. The first 24 days of New Year are the most important days. The first 12 days represent the 12 months. Each day represent how will be half of each month. The rest 12 days represent the other half of the months. The interesting thing of the rest 12 days is that after the day 12 the next days will be represented in upside down. For example, day 13 represents 12 months, 14 days represents 11 months, so consecutively at 24 days represents the first month. It is well known that days also affect people. For example, if people on the first day are sad, they will be sad most of the year. If people have problems, they will have problems most of the time.
The United States is a country that absorbs and modifies different cultures. Some residents who are immigrant live in Southern California area have different cultures to celebrate their holiday. Many American like the East country cultures. For example, Chinese celebrate the Spring festival that shares with the American. Dumping is a traditional food from China. Also, the Mexican communities celebrate the holiday combined with the American traditions.
For Thanksgiving and Christmas, the families are together, but for the New Year, everyone goes to different places to celebrate it. What does encourage families to celebrate the New Year in a different area? Why do not people meet their family and their friends to celebrate the new year? These are questions that some immigrants have when they arrive in the United States. Do not see families together on an important day that is not usual for them in their countries of origin. To live in a free country does not mean not stay with the family on important days. Anyone does not matter what country, religion or ethnicity needs family support. Everyone in each family plays an important role.
Every Chinese family knows, how to make dumpling and they try to make it together before celebrating the New Year. American people could buy the dumpling anywhere in the Los Angeles area. It also has another good mean this is families together having a dinner to thank and celebrate life.
China and Mexico have a history and a past that influence the present and the future of their people every day. Those cultures have an important message, family and life. Bring to the U.S. the combination the culture of those countries will give to us history past, emotion. Image to combine the Chinese and Mexican culture into one in the United States will be amazing to have the warm of Mexico and mysticeti of China in a free country. It will be more than freedom country. It will give the house of a new culture. The United States is a good place to give immigrants a peaceful life. The new immigrants have different cultures they are working together to keep their culture alive. As a result of this combination, the new culture will generate a strong economy because immigrants will find in this culture a second home.
The holidays from China, Mexico, and the United States combined into one would be a unique and mixture of cultures compiled through the years. Even though different countries have different cultures, according to Wikipedia, “the United States has a larger immigrant population than any other country, with 47 million immigrants as of 2015”. The United states would receive and keep traditions from Asia and Latin American countries. As a result, many people the first impression to the United States is most like the second hometown. In the future, the United States will be a stronger economic country because people who have more money to spend on celebrate their traditions holidays came from different countries.
