Weather disrupts game but did little to dampen spirits of excited crowd
Martin Luther King Jr once said: “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
This inspirational quote by the popular American Baptist, activist and one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955, came to mind when TMCC golfers sat huddled at the Tampines clubhouse on Feb 4.
They gathered in groups but remained excited. And remained unperturbed the highly anticipated Chinese New Year Golf Challenge 2023 event was heading for suspension because of inclement weather.
Rain belted, thunder deafened but colourfullyattired golfers were not dead-panned. They mingled, bantered, dialogued and looked ahead happily to what was to come.
So, when the game was cancelled due to the thunderstorm that lingered the entire afternoon, they pored through the details of the night’s schedule. After all, they knew that tradition had it that the CNY event had always been a big highlight on their annual calendar. SO MUCH TO TAKE BACK FROM CNY GOLF CHALLENGE Weather disrupts game but did little to dampen spirits of excited crowd.
So in changed attire – some dressed to the nines — they waited from 5pm as the protagonists ambled in for the main event. The “lions” roared in, the “dragons” stormed in, and the hue of multi-colours was so evident as the lion dance troupe paced in to the sound of drums.
And the excited crowd witnessed the troupe’s acrobatic skills on the high poles, the vigorous but synchronised drumming of the War Drum performance, and the LED-assisted dragon dancers swirling around in the Tampines Banquet Room.
Cameras clicked as oranges were tossed, “selfies” sprung into action as the troupe members mingled, and the hong baos were distributed quite freely as everyone seem to be in the CNY generous mood.
Of course, the CNY celebration must have the lohei ritual that is packed with symbolism. Auspicious well-wishes were exchanged and echoed across the banquet room as every table participated in this act of “tossing up good fortune.”
The welcomed flip side to the cancellation of the golf game was that there were more prizes for the lucky draw and games, and many went home with goodies.
A scrumptious banquet spread was served, which included crowd favourite dishes such as the steamed cod fish, roasted duck, sauteed scallops and glutinous rice.
It was like “a chance missed, but two gained”. That in itself resulted in a memorable event.
