{"id":1250,"date":"2014-02-06T05:00:45","date_gmt":"2014-02-06T13:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/?p=1250"},"modified":"2014-02-05T18:12:21","modified_gmt":"2014-02-06T02:12:21","slug":"riding-a-wood-horse-into-2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/china\/riding-a-wood-horse-into-2014\/","title":{"rendered":"Riding a Wood Horse into 2014"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"ink<\/a>

ink on rice paper by Nicki Chen<\/p><\/div>\n

In my dream, I\u2019m galloping across the prairie on a chestnut mare, my hair flying in the wind\u2014no saddle, no bridle, no bit in the horse\u2019s mouth. Together, my horse and I are wild and free. We\u2019re fast as a summer storm.<\/span><\/p>\n

In my memory, though, my short hair is artificially curled, and the horse is burdened with a heavy saddle. Before I mount, I have to lean down to see if the belt around his belly is tight enough to hold the saddle in place. His leather strap, engineered by men, reminds me of the brassieres we women strap around our chests to hold up our breasts. It\u2019s a miracle that a horse (or a woman) can run free with such a tight constraint.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"horseback<\/a>This horse of my memory, however, has no desire to run free. He dawdles and baulks. He stops to eat grass. My husband, on the other hand, has no such trouble.<\/span><\/p>\n

“But you’ve never ridden before,” I complain. “Why does he do exactly what you want him to do?”<\/span><\/p>\n

My husband shrugs. \u201cI\u2019m a descendant of Genghis Khan. Riding horses is in my blood.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In my imagination, the Year of the Wood Horse becomes a rocking horse, fortunes rising and falling, rising and falling as the horse rocks back and forth. Or the Wood Horse becomes a carved horse on a merry-go-round. I buy a ticket and take my grandson\u2019s hand. He chooses the white horse with golden hooves and mane. Her saddle is red and she has bells around her neck. The tinkling organ music begins, and around we go, waving at \u201cMommy\u201d with each round. When the horse is still, I help my grandson dismount, and we\u2019re right back where we started.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is the most unlikely scenario for the Year of the Wood Horse. We may imagine that our lives will be the same a year from now, but they won\u2019t. We never get off the merry-go-round of life in exactly the same place where we climbed on.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chinese astrologers aren\u2019t concerned with carousels or rocking horses. This is not the Year of the Wooden Horse; it\u2019s the Year of the Wood Horse, which is an entirely different thing. In Chinese tradition, wood is one of the five elements: fire, earth, metal, water, and wood. It\u2019s associated with Spring and the growth of trees. Wood provides the fuel for fire.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since horses, especially Mongolian ponies, can run long distances, 2014 should be a good year for travel. \u00a0<\/span>But beware, one feng-shui master<\/a> predicts, \u201cwith wood being very combustible, there will be a lot of scandals, conflicts, explosions and arguments.\u201d Another warns<\/a> of an \u201cincreasing potential for heated clashes as people stick to what they believe…\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\"painting<\/a>

painting by Nicki Chen<\/p><\/div>\n

On a more positive note, this astrologer<\/a> says we can look forward to \u201ca time of fast victories, unexpected adventure, and surprising romance\u2026Energy is high,\u201d she says, \u201cand production is rewarded. Decisive action, not procrastination, brings victory.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"painting<\/a>

painting by Nicki Chen<\/p><\/div>\n

They all seem to agree that for people like me, born in the Year of the Sheep, it will be a good year. And with my book, Tiger Tail Soup,<\/i> coming out in a few months, I\u2019m going to need all the good luck I can get. <\/span><\/p>\n

Wishing you all an enjoyable bareback gallop across the prairie of your choice in 2014.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"my<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In my dream, I\u2019m galloping across the prairie on a chestnut mare, my hair flying in the wind\u2014no saddle, no bridle, no bit in the horse\u2019s mouth. Together, my horse and I are wild and free. We\u2019re fast as a summer storm. In my memory, though, my short hair is artificially curled, and the horse […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,29,240],"tags":[276,274,275,277,273,925,262],"class_list":["post-1250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-china","category-culture","category-fortune-tellers","tag-chinese-astrologers","tag-descendant-of-genghis-khan","tag-merry-go-round","tag-predictions-for-2015","tag-riding-horses","tag-tiger-tail-soup","tag-year-of-the-horse"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3Kn1e-ka","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":10047,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/vanuatu\/vanuatu-vanuatu\/earliest-memories-of-my-mom\/","url_meta":{"origin":1250,"position":0},"title":"Earliest Memories of My Mom","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"November 6, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Mom and me My earliest clear memory of Mom is of her absence. 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But we really didn't have a happy hour habit. At least I didn't. Who would\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Culture","link":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/category\/culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/wine-rotated-e1600282365398.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3233,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/china\/out-with-the-horse-in-with-the-sheep\/","url_meta":{"origin":1250,"position":2},"title":"Out with the Horse; In with the Sheep.","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"February 8, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 2015, the Year of the Sheep. I was born in the Year of the Sheep; it's my year. So I suppose I should be able to write with a modicum of authority about sheep and our year. First off: Sheep are not dangerous like tigers. And they\u2019re not fast\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "China"","block_context":{"text":"China","link":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/category\/china\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A Ewe with Lambs and a Heron beside a Loch by Richard Ansdell ","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Ansdell_Richard_A_Ewe_with_Lambs_and_A_Heron_Beside_A_Loch-e1422310839680.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Ansdell_Richard_A_Ewe_with_Lambs_and_A_Heron_Beside_A_Loch-e1422310839680.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Ansdell_Richard_A_Ewe_with_Lambs_and_A_Heron_Beside_A_Loch-e1422310839680.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1171,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/culture\/it-takes-a-community-to-celebrate\/","url_meta":{"origin":1250,"position":3},"title":"It Takes a Community to Celebrate","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"January 31, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Chinese New Year in the United States. 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But I don\u2019t really celebrate\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Culture","link":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/category\/culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"red envelope and chocolate money","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/IMG_0797-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2262,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/china\/favorite-excerpts-from-author-part-1\/","url_meta":{"origin":1250,"position":4},"title":"A Few Short Excerpts from My Novel","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"August 21, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Tiger Tail Soup: A novel of China at war by Nicki Chen \u00a0 \u201cThis washed-out road, like the mountains themselves and the tigers that hide in their shadows, is all beauty and treachery.\u201d p. 2. \u201cKulangsu. 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