Ask Olivia
     
This Week's Questions:  

What is the best way to clarify an Asian's last & first names? 
(Confused in Webster Groves)

Dear Confused: The best way to clarify an Asian's last & first names is to ask which is the given (first) name and which is the family (last) name.  

What is the Mid-Autumn Festival?  
(Nell in Ballwin)

Dear Nell:  The Mid-Autumn Festival, or Moon Festival is celebrated on the fifteenth day of eighth lunar month (August 15th on Western calendar) when the moon shines brightest.  This festival is a legacy from the days of moon worship.  The Moon Festival has an old legend about a beautiful lady who was dismayed by the misconduct of her husband that she ascended to the moon and only visits him once a year at the time of a full moon.  Moon cakes, rich pastries traditionally filled with sweet red bean paste, are eaten during the Moon Festival.  Another tradition is a parade of children carrying lanterns in various shapes of dragons, fish, and stars, made with shine-through paper.