Gifts of Longevity
Do you have a beloved senior on your holiday gift list? Or is it someone for whom you wish the gifts of health, wellness and long life? Wing Hop Fung can help fill your seasonal shopping list. Traditional Chinese culture has always honored our ancestors and older friends. Age is a sign of wise living in the Middle Way: Staying warm in winter and cool in summer.
In present-day China, adults often celebrate their parents' birthdays to express their gratitude and respect. At those occasions it’s customary to serve foods that symbolize longevity such as uncut long noodles, to resemble a long delicious life, or peaches, suggesting continued freshness of spirit and taste. The Chinese God of Longevity, Shoulao, is a smiling old man with a bald head who is holding a peach and a graceful reishi mushroom. Apart from peaches and long noodles, other symbols of longevity are mountains and rocks, the character (literally: longevity), deer, and the Manchurian stork. The pine tree, due to its durability in cold weather, and bamboo, due to its evergreen foliage, symbolize longevity too, as does the pear tree , which has a prolonged life span.
There are charming sayings in Chinese that celebrate age. For example:
Old men have abundant knowledge and experience [just as] old trees have many roots
Born to be like ginger – the older, the spicier.
An elderly person at home [is like] a living golden treasure
Here are thoughtful gifts for your loved ones that celebrate their health and beauty and your regard for them.
Phoenix Dan Cong Oolong Tea (Ginger Flower Fragrance) 300g
Dan Cong is a special type of Oolong tea from Fenghuang shan (Phoenix mountains) in Guandong province, China. The Phoenix Mountains are elevated from 350 - 1560 meters above sea level. The cool humid environment gives an ideal growing climate to produce this delicate fragrant tea that is smooth with a lasting flavor and a hint of ginger flower fragrance.
You don’t have to be the God of Longevity to enjoy a delicious peach-flavored tea. Its tart peach and citrus notes are sure to please. This tea is caffeine-free, high in vitamin C, and excellent either hot or iced. You might add one of our tasty honeys to warm tea: https://winghopfung.com/search?q=honey
Peach Orchard Fruit Tea is made from hibiscus, dried peach, apple, orange peel, and marigold. It is recommended to help improve health issues such as regulating blood pressure and lowering harmful lipid levels. It is high in antioxidants.
Imagine drinking history. Old tea trees are especially prized in Yunnan. Some of them date back as far as 300 years. The root systems reach deep into the earth to absorb valuable minerals and offer a rich taste with abundant antioxidants. If you have never tasted tea from an old tree, you are missing a rare opportunity to connect with a humbling experience from long ago. Be sure to savor every drop as a picture into the past. Wing Hop Fung has Pu’er teas produced from old trees. The special aging of Pu’er protects heart health and adds depth of flavor.
Longevity Herbs
Chinese medicine is famous for its health and longevity tonic herbs such as ginseng, astragalus, goji berries and reishi mushroom. They are adaptogens to help us deal with stress and slow signs of aging. They make caring gifts as well as wise daily foods.
Ginsengs support and tone Qi energy, the endocrine system.
- Panax ginseng, aka red ginseng, Korean ginseng, is prized as an herbal Viagra, stimulates nitric oxide to enhance circulation to all extremities. It stimulates energy and endurance. It is warming and reduces chronic aches that are worse from cold weather, weakness and cold hands and feet.
- American ginseng, aka white ginseng, is cooling, moistening, rejuvenating, helps balance blood sugar for diabetes, curbs thirst and dry skin.
Astragalus – Huang Qi protects immunity.
It increases T cells to help prevent the weakening effects of chronic debilitating diseases such as HIV, cancer, asthma and heart troubles. It can be used daily to strengthen the body and preserve health. It is mildly semi-sweet. Chinese grandmothers know that during colds/flu season, adding a handful of huang qi slices to cook with a chicken soup can keep the family’s strength and spirits up. In spring, it can be cooked as a tea to help prevent allergies. It keeps our defensive energy toned.
Barbary Wolfberry Fruit /Black Gou qi zi
Most people love red goji berries as a snack or brewed as tea. Did you know there is a goji berry that is black? It’s wild black barbary wolfberry fruit and has a tangy, fruity sweetness like a combination of blueberry and dried cranberry. Black goji berry has the same healing qualities as the red goji berry with the added benefit of a huge amount of resveratrol. It is enjoyed anytime and has added health benefits such as improving immunity, eyesight, complexion and mood.
Reishi Mushroom is beautiful to look at, but far more valuable to our health than merely a decoration. It comes in many forms—the shiny broad red or black dried mushroom, or sliced, in capsules or extracts. Reishi, aka Ganoderma lucidum, is a potent immune system regulator, promising anti-cancer agent, and stress reducer. This mushroom is frequently used in traditional Chinese medicine for boosting energy and resistance through its effects on white blood cells, which help fight infection and cancer. Reishi taken regularly is a valiant warrior to protect our wellness. It is the prize of the God of Longevity who stays young as a peach.
Wing Hop Fung wishes you and your loved ones Health, Happiness and Long Life.
