by Heather Diamond | Mar 31, 2021 | Belief, Blog, Family, Intercultural, Relationships, Tradition
Ching Ming (also spelled Qing Ming), one of two annual “grave-sweeping” observances in the Chinese calendar, coincides with Easter this year, which seems vaguely appropriate to me. They are both commemorations of death, transition, and afterlife. Of course, Easter focuses on a single individual while Ching Ming is when Chinese families honor their ancestors. I might be stretching things, but the emphasis in both cases seems to be on continuity after death.
by Heather Diamond | Mar 24, 2021 | Blog, Daily Life, Family, Intercultural, Relationships, Tradition
Being in a Chinese family periodically throws me up against my cultural edges and forces me to question behaviors or beliefs I take for granted. For me, the concept of reciprocity is like an electric fence between my American training and Chinese customs. It zaps me with words like favor, debt, and obligation—all of which make me squirm.
by Heather Diamond | Aug 15, 2018 | Belief, Tradition, Travel
Last week we were in Bangkok, a city dotted with shrines. Elaborate, temple-shaped shrines to the Buddha, the new king, and the queen mother appear alongside traffic-clogged roads, in front of hospitals, inside and outside of upscale shopping malls. Confectionary...
