Bamboo has been a fundamental Chinese commonality for about 7000 years - representing resilience, modesty and loyalty to centuries of philosophers, poets, painters and musicians.
On a more hands-on level - the first books - period - were strung-together slats of bamboo forming a scroll - with characters written vertically by necessity. These scrolls eventually are of paper - another Chinese invention - made from bamboo-pulp.
Bamboo provided shelter - is still seen as scaffolding on construction-sites, even in big, modern cities - furnishings, household utensils, musical instruments, clothing, food and drink.
Today as always - nothing wasted!
All still more pronounced in far-flung villages: using what the environment offers - keeps offering as a quickly-renewing resource and free of charge.
It is said that young bamboo-shoots - a once-a-year delicacy in China - had/have to be taken earth-fresh from bamboo-groves in the countryside to palaces/high-end restaurants - often at some distance - within one day after being dug-up.
Prized, praised and very expensive when that fresh.
While the skyscraper pictured was built in Shenzhen - a tech/financial metropolis - it quickly came to be adopted affectionately, owned - even by young tech/financial urbanites - as the Spring Bamboo.
To Chinese - earth people: a bamboo-shoot forcefully breaking upward through the ground in spring-time.
To supercilious Westerners: a bullet- or penis-shape.
(No surprise there!)
Spring Festival (Chun Jie), also Lunar New Year, Feb 5 - 19.
Not Chinese New Year: this label is a careless Western convenience.
For accuracy and perspective: the West's actually is Solar New Year.
Moon and Sun.
Yin Yang!
Xin Nian Kuai Le!!!
Image Credit:
KPF China - Dezeen
Pam Mierau, Mgr. Development Services
pmierau@nelson.ca
City Council
nelsoncouncil@nelson.ca
John Dooley, Mayor
jdooley@ nelson.ca
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