The Mid-Autumn Festival is a cherished tradition commemorating harvest in many Asian cultures. Held annually on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, the festival fell on Tuesday, Sept. 17 of the Gregorian calendar this year. Students across the 5Cs gathered to celebrate, participating in festivities such as lantern-making, mooncakes and reflection, uniting international and non-international students alike in a shared appreciation of the holiday.
On the evening of Friday, Sept. 20, about 100 students gathered at Claremont McKenna College’s Cube to honor the festival by setting paper lanterns atop the surrounding pool. The annual event was co-hosted by the Claremont Chinese Students and Scholar Association (CSSA) and CMC’s Asian Pacific American Student Association (APASA). Open to both Chinese and non-Chinese students, the event offered mooncakes and lantern-making.
Chinese folklore honored the legend of the moon goddess Chang’e with mooncakes, a pastry filled with sweet bean paste or salted egg yolk, which are often shared with extended family and friends. Similarly, lanterns symbolized the lighting up of paths to good fortune and prosperity. Students wrote their wishes on the paper edges and placed them in the shallow water, watching the illuminated red lanterns floating underneath the moon.
Though she missed her hometown festivities, Michelin Ma PO ’28 said she was glad she could celebrate with this new community.
“I really liked sitting there with my friends and reflecting on my wishes for this new season,” Ma said. “I felt connected and very satisfied.”
Historically, CSSA hosted this event on a smaller scale. However, this year’s collaboration with APASA brought an unexpectedly large turnout.
“We thought it was going to be a small, warm event,” Felix Kuang CM ’27, a board member of APASA, said. “There were an insane amount of people – way more than we could imagine.”
Students gathered near the lantern-making table and bonded over the ways they celebrated the festival in their hometowns.
“It’s important to recognize the cross-cultural influence of the holiday for East Asian cultures,” Christine Hu CM ’27, a board member of CSSA, said.
In the future, APASA and CSSA said they hope to include more activities to engage the growing number of participants. Kunag said he plans to include informative workshops to educate students on the significance of the holiday.
“[The] Mid-Autumn Festival especially is…meant for reuniting with friends and family. Since most international students at the 5Cs can’t do that here, we host these major cultural events to support them,” Hu said. “There’s this Chinese saying that even though we’re in different places, we’re still under the same moon, and I think that’s very beautiful.”
The Claremont Taiwanese American Student Association (TASA) also hosted a Mid-Autumn social event earlier in the week on Sept. 13 at Dialynas Lounge. Students bonded over games, mooncakes and an abundance of beloved Asian snacks.
Molly Liao PO ’28, who usually celebrates the holiday in Taiwan through barbecues with her family, said she appreciated how TASA welcomed everyone, regardless of their background.
“Everyone can just get some free food no matter their country or region of origin,”
Liao said. “It was a chance for students to be united when the moon is the roundest.”
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