Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year, is a time of celebration and reflection in many cultures. In 2025, the holiday fell on Jan. 29, marking the start of the Year of the Snake, the sixth animal in the Chinese Zodiac.
The sign of the snake is associated with the personality traits of being wise, sympathetic, determined and mysterious according to Times of India. At McKinley, there are a couple of teachers who were born in the year of the snake. Both told the Pinion they fit with all the personality traits of being a snake except for being mysterious.
Cynthia Reves, English and Newswriting teacher, was born in 1965, making her a snake. “I don’t even know what that means to be mysterious. Wise…I guess I’ve always been a good student,” she said.
Reves also said in her career as a teacher, she has to be a mentor for students, providing guidance while still being sympathetic and understanding of them. “It seems like a good job for a snake,” she said.
Snakes are also known to have a good sense of intuition. When asked about her intuition, Reves said, “Well, I made good decisions all along…so I tell myself, I can trust myself.”
Reves grew up in Arkansas so she wasn’t introduced to the Chinese Zodiac until she went to Japan to teach English. When she moved to Hawaii, however, she saw how big of a celebration it is here.
Reves said she doesn’t do anything particularly special for Lunar New Years, but she is planning to get a Year of the Snake shirt this year since it is her year after all.
Another teacher born in the Year of the Snake is the Photography teacher, Chasity Reid. She recently moved to the island last year, so she didn’t know much about Lunar New Year but seemed eager to learn more.
Although this is Reid’s first time learning about the Chinese Zodiac, she is familiar with the Western Zodiac made up of 12 constellations. Reid lived in Louisiana for her whole life so she has always known of those Zodiac Signs and the fact she is a Cancer.
Reid said it’s great she learned about the Chinese Zodiac because she feels like it fits her better than the Western Zodiac. “I do think I have some characteristics of a Cancer, but I also think there are a lot of things that I don’t necessarily align with.” Reid said.
Like Reves, Reid agreed she fits with all of the characteristics of being a snake except for mysterious. “I’m definitely not mysterious. I think I may be too like ‘what you see is what you get’ basically,” Reid said.
Factors of being a teacher include being sympathetic and wise. This aligns well with the characteristics of a snake. On top of being sympathetic as a teacher to understand the students better, being able to understand them on an emotional level is also a part of it. Reid said, “I definitely lean towards being very emotional and emotionally drawn to people.”
Wisdom is something that comes with having experiences in life helping to contribute to your overall consciousness and knowledge. Reid said, “I think the older I get, the more wisdom I have.”
Even though this year will be honoring the Snake, the Lunar New Year is still celebrated by many different people. One of the traditions of the Lunar New Year that is a favorite among the children, is the giving of red envelopes called Li Xi (pronounced: ly-see) by the elders. Li Xi are filled with money as a wish for good luck in the new year. When asked if this is a highlight of the holiday, Baixuan Hu (℅ 2028) said, “For me for sure, for my mom no, because she has to pass [Li Xi] out.”
