Measuring Life By The Zodiac

新年快乐 • 恭喜发财 • 蛇年大吉

🧧🎊🧧🎊🧧🎊🧧🎊🧧🎊

Happy Lunar New Year from Shanghai!

I was born in the Year of the Snake, so this is my year. But contrary to what you might expect, this is seen as bad luck rather than good. So it’s customary in China that you should wear red underwear (ideally gifted to you by someone else) to ward off the evil spirits during the festival season. We’re hoping that the snake hats make it doubly auspicious… 🐍🐍

Silly costumes aside, there’s something quite useful about measuring life in the twelve-year phases of the zodiac. For me that’s four phases of twelve, and here’s how I now look back at them.

0-11: A Happy Childhood.

A perfect start to life, surrounded by love, culture and privilege. Not much self-realisation, apart from maybe figuring out that I looked babyish and could get my way by acting adorable. Quite a useful skill to take into adulthood, although I must report massively diminishing efficacy in recent years.

12-23: Sleepwalking Through Adolescence.

Supremely awkward and obsessive phase, spent obliviously grieving the loss of my mother while distracting myself with academia and TV. Fortunate to drop out of a career in law and run away to distant distant Japan, from where I could start to make sense of life so far.

24-35: Stumbling into Success.

After a stint back in Europe, returned to Asia and started to cement my identity here. Realising that my slightly weird disposition didn’t gel well with regular employment, was open to new things and discovered the right career at the right time. But despite the (unconvincing) appearance of strength and status, was still emotionally immature and vulnerable, easily abused and manipulated.

36-47: Self-Actualisation.

For the first time since childhood, becoming aware that I have the right to demand happiness for myself. No coincidence that this phase maps directly onto meeting - and marrying - the happiest person I’ve ever known. A phase of living in the moment, and embracing an inherent need for curiosity, connection and challenge. And eating snacks on the couch.

I don’t believe in the zodiac. But I do appreciate rituals like this which make you interrupt your routines and take stock of your place in the world. Or rather, your place in yourself. 👶🏻👦🏻👨🏻👨🏻‍🦳👴🏻


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