by Wing C.
To celebrate the Year of the Fire Horse, the Community Flower Studio offered a traditional Candy Box (Quan-He) filled with my childhood favourites, alongside two mindfulness-based creative activities rooted in Chinese culture: calligraphy and paper cutting. To make calligraphy accessible for beginners, I designed a simple “copy book” format — similar to cursive practice books — and provided brushes, ink, and red paper with gold accents, with step-by-step guidance.
Throughout the day, different groups of members and friends dropped in.
Long-term supporters practised writing huī chūn (輝春, words of blessing). One explored the ancient pictogram form of the character “Horse,” while another experimented with running script. We reflected on how, growing up in Hong Kong, we had unknowingly practised mindfulness and emotional regulation through calligraphy.
A Willoughby Council staff member of Indian heritage sampled traditional sweets and learned about huī chūn. A mother and daughter travelled through pouring rain to practise together, sharing memories of displaying couplets in rural Hong Kong. A Jewish couple came from Bondi Junction; over tea and gok chai, we exchanged stories of culture and heritage. The paper cutting reminded him of traditions his Singaporean mother once described, including giving lai see (red envelopes).
There were no stage performances. No lion dance. No big crowd.
Just conversations. Stories. Ink on red paper. Scissors cutting patterns. Tea being poured.
For me, this is multiculturalism beyond food — cultural exchange through creativity, mindfulness embedded in tradition, and meaningful impact created in small gatherings.
