The Mid-Autumn Festival Reunion

In our family, one of the most cherished festivals is the Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋節), also known as the Mooncake Festival. It falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, usually in September, when the moon is at its fullest and brightest.

When I was a child, my grandparents would tell us the legend of Chang’e, the Moon Goddess who drank the elixir of immortality and flew to the moon, and Hou Yi, her husband who shot down nine suns to save the earth. But for us in Singapore, it’s less about the myth and more about family reunion — much like how the full moon brings everyone together.

I remember one year vividly. My extended family (over 30 people!) gathered at my grandparents’ HDB flat in Toa Payoh. The aunties spent the afternoon making traditional snowskin mooncakes and lotus seed paste ones, while the uncles set up lanterns in the void deck. As the sun set, we carried our glowing lanterns (some shaped like rabbits, cars, or even Hello Kitty!) to the open field nearby.

We laid out mats, ate mooncakes, pomelos, and peanuts, and my grandfather would point out the “rabbit” in the moon. The children would release sky lanterns with our wishes written on them, watching them float up into the night sky like little stars.

The adults chatted about life, shared hong bao with the kids, and everyone sang old Teochew songs.

That evening taught me the true meaning of the festival in our community: gratitude for family, abundance, and togetherness — even in a fast-paced city like Singapore.