Rein in old worries and start fresh: Year of the Horse on horizon

Wollongong's Vietnamese community is preparing to celebrate the most significant event on its cultural calendar – Lunar New Year, also known as Tet.

While the official New Year falls on February 17, the local festivities will include a vibrant community celebration at the Dapto Ribbonwood Centre on Saturday, February 28.

“Tet is the most important event for all members of the Vietnamese community,” says Teresa Tran, a community representative in Wollongong. 

“Vietnamese Lunar New Year is a time of family reunion, honouring our ancestors, and welcoming a new beginning with hope and gratitude. It reminds us of who we are, where we come from, and the importance of family and community.

“It doesn’t matter how far or close you are, everybody tries to travel back home.” 

Because many locals spend the official New Year dates traveling to see family or visiting larger festivals in Sydney, the Wollongong community intentionally scheduled the celebration for one week later. Even for those who cannot make the trip back to Vietnam, what matters most is being present for one another.

“You share a meal, or you phone them, you video-call them and you talk to them,” Teresa says. 

“Tet is about togetherness. Everybody gets together to be present in each other's lives.”

This Lunar New Year marks the transition into the Year of the Horse, which Teresa says symbolises strength, resilience and courage.

“Whoever is born in the Year of the Horse seems to be someone that is very strong in character and resilient in life,” she says. “Whatever life throws at them, they continue to move on. They don’t give up”.

Tet is a sacred time to celebrate and reunite with family, honour ancestors and usher in good fortune, health and happiness for the new year. Paying respect to ancestors is an important tradition that reflects the Vietnamese value of uong nuoc nho nguon (when you drink water, remember its source).

"We prepare an altar so you can pay respect to your ancestors, then you light incense as a symbol of inviting them back home to celebrate with us,” Teresa says. 

"We offer prayers to them and ask them to bless our family for the next year.”

Lucky red envelopes with gifts of money inside are given to children and elders, symbolising luck, happiness and protection. The money itself is less important than the blessing, to pass on good fortune from one generation to the next.

Teresa says that Tet is a time to let go of old worries and start fresh with gratitude and positivity. This means following a few traditional rules on New Year's Day.

“You should not borrow money, because that means that you run out of money for the whole year. You don't borrow money, and you don't argue; you don't fight with your friends or relatives, because that could bring bad luck for the next 12 months,” she says.

“You don't argue, you don't do bad things, It’s about starting the New Year with a clean heart and positive intentions.”

The traditions also serve as a way to pass on cultural identity to the younger generation of Vietnamese-Australians. Wearing traditional red clothing for luck and sharing special meals, the community ensures their values and customs remain strong.

“It is important to preserve our identity and to know the root of where we came from, to be able to perform and contribute better to the country that we now call home, Australia,” Teresa says.

"If you don’t do that, the next generation may not understand why we celebrate Tet, Lunar New Year, or why we do certain things we do.

“Myself, I came to Australia as a refugee, I was rescued by that ship ... so every day is a blessing to remember where you come from and to be appreciative and grateful.”

The celebration at the Ribbonwood Centre is open to the broader public. The event is free to attend, and has a program packed with traditional singing and dancing performed by community members of all ages, from young children to elders.

“We don’t sell tickets because we want to invite as many as possible – everybody can come to our community to share our culture,” Teresa says. 

“Living in Australia has taught us that preserving our traditions is a choice – and one we make proudly, not only for ourselves, but to share our culture and values with the broader community. It’s a joyful event and everyone's welcome.”

In light of the recent attacks at Bondi, Teresa says that open cultural celebrations like these are vital for community harmony. Lunar New Year is about family, gratitude, respect and hope, values that are universal.

“We are all different, but we are all human,” she said.

“It’s important to live together with happiness... to be open, to be understanding, and to be respectful of other people. We don’t want to create any resentment or hatred; we want everybody to live in harmony.”