Cien Dias de Ara

In Chinese Custom, the 100th day is a Big Deal. I've tried to find out why, but so far, have only managed to get knowing looks and "Well ... it's an old custom" out of anyone. Here's what I've found on-line:

On the hundredth day some Chinese families host another celebration. Friends and family bring fish and chicken to the child's home. When the chicken is cooked, the tongue is rubbed on the baby's lips to make the child a good talker. And the baby's paternal grandfather may present the baby with a rocking chair.

Well ... alas, in these days of bird flu and political correctness, we have had no chickens, hence no tongues, hence no tongue rubbing. I guess that means that Ara won't be a good talker. That's certainly been true so far! Her vocabulary to date merely consists of a complicated and intricate collection of Ooh's Gooh's Gaa's and WHOOOO's! And then lately "GHGHGHGHGH!!!!" while blowing bubbles. Perhaps these will someday evolve into actual words, and perchance even sentences. But to date, there is no indication of this.

And sadly, Chinese Custom #2 has already been slightly preempted: Ara already has a rocking chair! Of course, perhaps the paternal grandfather is supposed to send a rocking chair for ME (feel free!), but if it's truly a chair for Ara, then a trip to the Chicco store a while back rendered that 100-day ritual about 30 days too late.

According to the zoo with the pandas, the 100th day is the day when the baby can finally be named. Up until this point, the Chinese might have been referring to the baby with her "milk name", the name that is used to fool evil spirits. Apparently there are many name changes through life for more or less this purpose. Well, Ara has been called Ara since day one, so hopefully the evil spirits will just look the other way on this one too.

The cynical basis for the 100-day naming ritual is that giving a name to a baby may seem karmically presumptuous, and may cause spirits to reclaim the baby to the spirit world. After the 100th day, the baby is strong enough to survive, and so naming it, and making it part of this world, is fair game.

So - I guess we've really been tempting fate. Ara seems none the wiser, thankfully. Happy Hundreth Day sweetee!! Glad you made it!!