Macpherson CC organized a cupid event. Someone commented that the event name in Chinese “鹊桥会”（鹊què）is inauspicious. Was she right?
The Chinese folklore goes like this: the union of 牛郎 & 织女 angered the gods and the couple was banished to opposite sides of the “heavenly river” for eternal separation. But the gods later showed mercy to allow them to meet once a year. “鹊桥” refers to the bridge that 喜鹊(Magpies) built so that the love birds can meet on 七月初七 each year which we now know as 七夕节 or 乞巧节.
“鹊桥会” had the implied meaning of a couple reunion, then subsequently derived the meaning of “matchmaking” which has a romantic connotation. This is a good example of the tightly-knit nature of Chinese culture and the evolving language semantics over time.
The organizer could have used words like 相亲会、联谊会 but that’s too cringey. They not only choose the more refined and elegant “鹊桥会” but also get the matchmaking stigma out of the way. Brilliant
Tomorrow is 七夕节, end this post with an excerpt from a beautiful poem 《鹊桥仙.纤云弄巧》 which many of you are familiar with:
金风玉露一相逢，便胜却人间无数。两情若是久长时，又岂在朝朝暮暮。
