What I wish for Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year is a time for making wishes. But unlike in the West, the tradition in China seems to have grown increasingly charged with superstition as more Chinese turn to a myriad of deities to grant them better times ahead.

On the first day of the lunar calendar last year, Lama Temple (or Yonghegong) in Beijing drew a crowd of nearly 80,000 who burned joss sticks to seek the blessings of their gods; the figure for the previous Lunar New Year was about 67,000. The turnout could be much higher in a couple of weeks when the nation celebrates Spring Festival.

While explanations abound, I tend to believe feelings of uncertainty or sometimes helplessness, or both, have driven many to deities that are believed to possess magical powers. When I think about my wishes for the nation and myself in the Year of the Horse, I realize some of them look set to happen, but most would require luck and a touch of miracle. Here are my five top hopes.

1: More blue-sky days: In 2013, Beijing saw 58 heavily polluted days with smoggy skies, or almost 16 percent of the year. Urban residents now live in constant fear of smog striking any time again even during lulls of blue skies. While the nation sorely needs to devise a coherent and viable strategy to clear smog, scientists and officials have locked horns over the main causes of the pollution woes.

I pray for a miracle, without which we'll continue to count on strong winds to blow away smog.

2: Safer food: President Xi Jinping's impromptu visit to a Qingfeng Steamed Bun outlet late last month has hugely boosted the reputation of local dishes and renewed people's love affair with traditional dishes. At the restaurant, Xi ordered six pork-stuffed steamed buns, stewed pig liver soup and a plate of vegetables, which have since become one of the most popular set meals in the restaurant chain.

Like many other Chinese consumers who are jittery about frequent food contamination, my family has always tried to avoid cheap, mass-market food. But after Xi ate at Qingfeng, we followed suit and found the eatery clean, and its buns and porridge tasted delicious.