To echo the annual theme of "Legacy of Loving Home", SHKP Club specially hosted "The Most Treasured Family Heirloom" Competition this year to encourage SHKP Club members and the public to share family's meaningful and precious heirlooms, promoting the love and family values inherited across generations. The competition had an enthusiastic response, supported by participants of various ages and received over 13,000 diversified entries. Participants demonstrated the importance of legacy and family heritages, invaluable spirits and universal virtues symbolised by family heirlooms, as well as close intergenerational family ties, through multiple ways.
The entries reflected that many family heirlooms have common attributes and special meanings:
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Whatever form the family heirlooms take, the family values and affection carried are more important than the heirlooms themselves. Its significance is the universal attitudes and virtues symbolised being inherited over generations
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Family heirlooms may take on new forms over time and as society evolves, but the spirit and familial love conveyed last forever
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"Tangible" family heirlooms imply dedication to family and selfless love, highlighting the precious feeling and emotion endured throughout the years.
Below are highlights about the champion entry in each category:
Heirloom Spirit: Cherish what you have and be contributive
Wai Nga hand-knitted a vest for her mother during her school years. Although the vest has become damaged and does not fit after 40 years, her mother still cherishes it. Wai Nga believes that this long-lasting vest symbolises years of motherly selflessness, hard work, plus the virtue of meticulous effort. She hopes to pass on the diligence and priceless love carried by this vest to the next generation.
Loving Home Spirit: Cherish and thank family members' care, effort and contribution
Heirloom Spirit: Being endurant and disciplined is vital to personal growth
Yee Ching used beautiful pictures to illustrate how the whetstone inherited from her grandfather connected intergenerational family memories. Her worked depicted the whetstone had addressed her family's needs over the years, such as sharpening kitchen knives for cooking, and sharpening tailoring scissors to make pillows for the family. The whetstone has different meanings, values, and influences across generations, but always conveys the Chinese saying - "Iron must be tempered a hundred times before it becomes steel", reminding all family members the importance of endurance.
Loving Home Spirit: We can overcome challenges with family members by our side
Heirloom Spirit: A simple, calm and committed life is the way to show virtue
Man Kuen's family inherited grandmother's tea-making technique, and made a habit of drinking tea together to foster interaction and love. Man Kuen shared her grandmother's tea-making taught her the right attitude to have in life. Through the tradition of tea-drinking, she learnt that one should not simply prize fame and fortune, but instead to keep a level head and seek a clear direction in life. She thinks that this family heirloom has imposed a profound impact on the family, and helped foster more meaningful life.
Loving Home Spirit: Nurture kids with virtues to develop positive values and life wisdom
Heirloom Spirit: Enjoy time with family and keep a good home
Yuk Chi's mother taught her cooking skills from an early age. She thought it was healthy for a family to eat together at home, which helped unit family members and cultivate a happy family life. Taking care in cooking for children reflects one's love and care towards family. Yuk Chi has inherited her mother's philosophy in keeping a good home by demonstrating the same virtues and love that she received from her mother. She always stays home to cook and eat with the family, cares for and loves her children, which reveals the passing on of motherly affection.
Loving Home Spirit: Treasure the moments spent with family, cook for your beloved at home, stay by their side and communicate more
Please click here for more winning entries, viewing how the winners are living the spirit of "Legacy of Loving Home".
