Moon landings and Chinese grandmas

It was my wily grandfather who finally cajoled her out of the Mid-Autumn blues.

"Haiyarr. Of course they didn't get to see Chang'e. She would have gone to the other side of the moon to hide from them. She's not stupid, you know?"

That said, it was still some years later before she would agree to the familiar rituals again.

My grandparents are long gone, but the conflict between myths and science still exists, especially for the millions of older Chinese raised on rituals and folklore, not just in China but also all over the world.

Our pretty fairytales tell us that the lady in the moon is a lonely wife who had escaped to the moon to avoid an angry, ambitious husband.

She had taken an elixir that enabled her to fly to the lunar orb, where she was doomed to a lonely fate, accompanied only by a pet rabbit. Often, she would look down to the Earth from the shade of an osmanthus tree.

It's a lot more romantic than the Western concept that the moon is made of cheese, and that he's an old man.

That's probably why a moon landing, or the thought that man could walk on the moon, rouses such emotional reactions. After all, festivals are a part of our colorful culture and contribute much to the rich heritage we were raised on.

As for my mother-in-law, she's still convinced that sending a machine all the way up to the moon is just not natural. And she is not all that wrong, is she?

Related: Culture adjustment in China

Festivities and food miles

Calamari index? It's butter in China

For more Chinese Whispers, please click here.