Popo had been very busy in the kitchen preparing the big feast for the lunar New Year. Early in the morning of the New Year Eve, some rooster and hen could be heard making noise in the back alley outside the kitchen side door. By the time DiDi and other kids got up, the birds were already dead and blood was drained in a bowl. DiDi looked at the birds in a big copper basin on the kitchen floor, she was a little frightened, but also fascinated at the same time.
Popo lifted a big water kettle from the stove and poured hot water into the basin, and asked Didi to hold a small bamboo tray for her, “ you can help me here, I will make something special for you kids for the New Year”. Popo pulled over a little wood stool, sat down, started to pluck the colorful tail feathers from the rooster, and put them on the bamboo tray. These feathers were long, curvy, with dark golden and black patterns. She also picked a few feathers from the wing that had thicker barrel. Then Popo plucked a pile of feathers from the hen, those were short and fluffy. “Now let me work on the birds and feathers, you go to play with your sisters and brothers.”
The pale winter sun was lowering behind the bare trees on the far side of the garden. Clothes on the clothing lines across the neighbor’s outdoor stairway were tumbling in the chilly wind. Children came back in from their jumping rope game, smelled the wonderful scent of fresh chicken soup from the kitchen.
Popo cleared some fabric and her sewing bundle from the low table,“ everyone sit down and you will have some special treat”. The boys and girls sat down and waited excitedly. Each one got a steaming bowl of golden colored chicken soup in front of them. Then Popo put a big bowl of steamed and roasted rice in the middle, ” sprinkle some crispy rice on the hot chicken soup now”. Little hands all went in the big bowl and crispy rice flying all over the table. Some, however, did land into hot soup bowls, and made very happy crackling and popping sound. “ Wow, this is like we have tiny firecrackers on the table!” “You will have real firecrackers if you can stay awake till midnight today. Now drink your soup before it gets cold”. The soup was delicious and crispy rice was juicy and soaked with flavor.
Didi helped Popo to carry empty bowls to the kitchen, and asked: “ this firecracker chicken soup was really fun, but what happened to those beautiful feathers? “ Popo picked up a cloth bundle sitting on the bamboo chair, and opened it on the table. “ I made some birdies for you boys and girls to play shuttlecock.” Didi could not believe her eyes. The birdies Popo made were so beautiful, they stood there proudly showing off their colorful feathers just like birds alive. The base of the birdie was made of a Chinese coin wrapped and sewn with layers of fabric, a short tube of one feather barrel was cut in cross slits at one end and sewn standing up on the top surface of the base. a bundle of rooster feathers were arranged like exploding fireworks out of the feather barrel stand. The other kind with hen feathers looked like a soft fluffy ball of giant dandelion. Popo gathered the birdies and gave one to each kid, fluffy ball kind to girls and firework kind to boys. She said that when she was a kid, boys played shuttlecock the kicking birdie game, and girls played birdie with a piece of hand held board to hit the birdie in all kinds of dancing poses without letting it touch the ground.
Children cheered and ran out to the terrace, in no time the birdies were flying with all that beautiful feathers flapping in the air.