【推荐1】The “three ox spirit” (三牛精神) first appeared in President Xi Jinping’s speech at a New Year’s gathering last December. The ox is a symbol of diligence (勤劳), progress and strength. On Feb 18, the first working day of the new year, Hua Chunying, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, explained it on the social media to encourage people with the “three ox spirit”—the serving-the-people ox, the pioneering ox, the persisting ox.

Centuries ago, most people earned their living through farming. The ox was used to help in the field and carry heavy goods.

The ox has played an important place in Chinese culture. Ancient Chinese poets and writers often described the ox in literature. In the Classic of Poetry, the oldest collection of Chinese poetry, the animal was mentioned in nine out of the 305 pieces.

Oxen seldom bully (欺负) the weak or fear the strong. They work hard and make sacrifices (牺牲). A poem by Lu Xun (1881-1936) — “Fierce-browed, I coolly defy a thousand pointing fingers; Head bowed, like a willing ox I serve the children (横眉冷对千夫指，俯首甘为孺子牛)” fully expresses the poet’s love to our country and the people.

So naturally, those who were born in the Year of the Ox are often expected to be hardworking and dependable. “They never want to be the center of attention or look for praise,” the website China Highlights noted.

【推荐3】Another Winter Olympic Games officially came to a close, which means another closing ceremony was held. In each ceremony, there were moments of entertainment, celebration and reflection.

The “Moment of Remembrance” is a very important part of the closing ceremony, and for this year, the theme “A Willow Twig” presents the segment with Chinese characteristics.

The willow twig is a part of the willow tree, and in Chinese, the character for the willow tree is a homophone of the character liu, which means asking a person to stay when bidding farewell. Thus it symbolizes the sorrow of separation.

In ancient days,when two friends part, the traveling party will always receive a willow twig as a gift. The athletes were met with success, disappointments and historic memories, but it was time to depart. For the closing ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics, it was only fitting that the willow twig would be incorporated into the ceremony as the athletes depart to their respective countries.

The performers beautifully interacted with a LED floor to show imagery of the willow one that showed the emotional symbolism of “a bittersweet goodbye”. The theme of “one world, one family” continued to be evident through the Games as 365 different individuals all held a willow branch that represented “the unwavering spirit of remembering the departed through the 365 days of a year”.

The stage then turned into a beautiful shade of green, which was a symbol of the shifting of past negativity into the blossoming of a new day.

The return of spring focuses on moving forward and the positives in a post-pandemic world. It is clear that they hit the right note as the performance will be remembered for a long time to come.

【推荐1】The boulders (巨石) look generally unremarkable, besides the fact that they stretch up and down the ridge in a curved line. Most people who don’t know their story would probably choose to look at the sweeping view of San Jose below them instead.

The timeworn line of boulder, is part of a system of stone walls, the remains of which stretch along the East Bay Hills all the way from Grimly Peak in Berkeley to where I watched a man tie his shoes at the Sierra Vista Open Space Preserve above East San Jose.

They exist only in sections, and some are better preserved than others — where I found the man, the walls are short and thick and half-sunk into the earth, hut further north at Ed R. Levin County Park in Milpitas, they remain almost perfectly assembled and stand several feet tall.

The first recorded mention of the walls is from an article in the San Francisco Chronicle from 1896. “Half a mile east of Grizzly Peak stand the remains of stone walls which have long baffled the researchers. By whom they were built, when and why is an unsolved mystery,” the article stated. The unnamed author went on to write a generally-accepted theory of the walls that they were constructed by “some long-forgotten race, possibly Aztec”.

Of course, the people who originally inhabited the hills and the land surrounding them are far from forgotten. The Ohlone people thrived in the area for thousands of years until they were largely displaced by European settlers — however, there’re no records of them constructing stone walls.

“Some of my colleagues have heard the rocks were placed there by Spanish settlers clearing their fields, and there have been speculations that it could have been part of Indigenous practice,” said Charlotte Graham, a spokesperson for the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority. “We’ve also heard it could be a natural occurrence.”

However, there isn’t enough evidence on the walls to be entirely certain. A study dated lichen (地衣) on the walls in Berkeley as being from 1851 to 1880, though other sections of the walls haven’t been tested, and there’re few historical accounts on their presence.