思念与感恩
每年清明节，已故台湾艺人柯受良的胞弟柯受雄总会雇一条小渔船，漂漂荡荡一个半小时来到浙江渔山列岛，祭奠他的先祖；意大利华侨姜文耀也会拖家带口从米兰飞回浙江青田，来这里寻找他的根……
“梨花风起正清明，游子寻春半出城。”清明时节，万物复苏，空气清朗，草木滋长，但更重要的是，远在海外的游子会千里迢迢归国寻根，缅怀祖先、寄托乡愁。
祭祖、寻根，因这里是每一个海外游子的家，他们从这里出发走向世界各地，也通过这里完成身份的回归和文化的传承。
去年清明节，旅居美国纽约州的华侨老叶，携家人踏上回浙江的祭祖之旅。“这次回到家乡，当年的水稻田和池塘都不见了，看到的是新建的厂房、新居，还有正在兴建的美丽公路，就在村边穿过，家乡的变化实在是太大了。”老�~说。“两美浙江”建设让他对自己的家乡更多了一份自豪。老叶说，回乡祭祖是落叶归根的体现，尽管多年在异国他乡，依然忘不了家乡的一草一木。他要孩子们不要忘记故土，并为家乡的发展做些力所能及的事情，报答家乡的父老乡亲。今年，老叶打算带着已经毕业工作的儿子和儿媳妇一起回国祭祖，要他们永远不要忘记自己来自何处。
事实上，清明时节回乡祭祀先祖只是外在仪式，更多萦绕心头的是那动人的乡愁。席慕蓉说，乡愁是一棵没有年轮的树，永不老去。在我们还是孩提时，家乡那袅娜炊烟、如抹山影、软语乡音是那样的任性不经意，而在离别乡土，孜孜以求追寻生活目标时，承载着生于斯长于斯的乡愁又是那样的真切如潮涌。
每到清明节，雪柔都特别高兴，这个在杭州大城市长大的孩子，对爸爸出身的那个临安小山村充满了好奇。对爸爸来说，回乡是一解乡愁，对孩子来说，清明意味着回归自然。“春暖花开――而且有很多花儿开了，树林中、田野里、河边、湖畔的空气清新。出门散散步赏赏花，心情也好。”雪柔的妈妈说。
有首歌唱道：“生活不止眼前的苟且，还有诗和远方的田野。”如今，城市的节奏越来越快，互联网带来的新的思维和模式，更让人不觉间会有茫然，而能给自己一片宁静的诗和远方的田野，莫过于慢下脚步，寻回儿时的感觉。“故乡，那儿时的纯真和嬉戏，那无关名利情仇的乡里乡亲，就是我们清明时节寄怀乡愁的丰饶情感和认知价值。”在笔者采访中，一位大学教授如是说。
祭者，记也。是亲人，也是乡愁。
传承与创新
清明节传承至今已有2500多年的历史，时代虽然在变，但清明的节日文化一直被代代相传并不断丰富。
有一种意见认为，清明扫墓人数下降，甚至很多人把清明节过成了休闲旅游的节日，是民族优秀传统淡化的表现。但笔者认为，要说到传统，批评把清明节过成了休闲旅游的节日，其实恰恰是对清明传统理解的误差，因为清明节本来又叫“踏青节”，时届清明，草长莺飞、万物吐绿，春游踏青本来就是和扫墓祭祖一样悠久的传统。
历朝历代都有很多描写清明春游的诗词，就是一个旁证。所谓“梨花风起正清明，游子寻春半出城。日暮笙歌收拾去，万株杨柳属流莺”。就连宋代的理学家程颢都写诗描述清明踏青、流连忘返的情景：“莫辞盏酒十分劝，只恐风花一片红。况是清明好天气，不妨游衍莫忘归。”古人在清明结伴出游，回归自然、舒展精神，同时开展荡秋千、蹴鞠、马球、插柳等一系列休闲、公益和体育活动。说到这里，其实我们现代人工作压力大、强度高，生活节奏快、紧张，清明踏青出游更有必要。
另外，网上祭奠是近年来兴起的一种新型的祭奠方式，在网上就可以祭奠亲人，不必亲自去墓地便可以实现祭祖的目的。网上祭奠具有众多优势，在年轻一代中流传较广，但也有很多人对此产生质疑，认为这样一种形式丢弃了中国几千年的传统，失去了祭祖的真正目的。
而支持网上祭奠的人则认为，祭祖重在表达哀思，不拘泥于形式。互联网改变了我们的生活，成为我们现代生活中的一部分。由于互联网的参与，使得祭奠方式也发生了变革。这是现代生活的一种特色，是符合现代社会发展的一种趋势。更何况现在异地工作的人占比越来越大，很多人离家千里，即便有清明假，也没有足够的时间回乡。
笔者认为，任何事物都会随着岁月的流逝、时代的更替不断地演变甚至消亡。如果仅仅注重某种形式，那么，一个节日的意义也就被淡化甚至消解了。对于清明这样一个男女老幼共同参与的特殊日子，更需要注重和传承的是它的人文精神。所以，这并不是一个纯粹思念故人的日子。为了让新一辈的年轻人也能对这个节日有更深刻的理解并以自己的方式接纳它、延续它，不妨在传承中有所创新，融入各种现代元素，使之成为大家喜闻乐见的活动。
Qingming Festival in early April is a key event in Chinese life： it looks back to ancestors and it looks to future. People sweep tombs and conduct sacrificial ceremonies to remember and honor the deceased. And people go out to enjoy and embrace the sunny world that is young and lovely again in springtime.
For many Chinese， they come home to visit their ancestors’ tombs on the Qingming Festival. Some even travel across the world. On the day， Ke Shouxiong， a Taiwanese， hires a small fishing boat and takes a 90-minute trip across the sea to visit the ancestral bombs in Yushan Islands in East China Sea. Jiang Wanyao， an overseas Chinese living in Milan， Italy， comes home with his family to visit his ancestral roots in Qingtian in southern Zhejiang. Visiting one’s ancestral tombs in hometown on Qingming is a ritual for many. What they relive on that big day are memories of the past and home and the fond sentiments attached to the memories.
Qingming Festival is more than 2，500 years old in China. The festival remains unchanged but new elements are introduced. Some people say that the Qingming Festival wasn’t as important as it used to be as suggested by the decreasing numbers of people who visit the tombs of their beloved. Many treat the festival as an enjoyable holiday. Some even conclude that the tradition is phasing out. Traditionally， however， Qingming Festival is by no means merely about tomb sweeping. It is also about enjoying springtime. There are numerous ancient poems describing the happy outings on the day. If one goes through these poems， one can well know how ancient people enjoyed recreational activities during the day in early April. They played on a swing， played polo and Cuju football， and they planted willow trees.
Sacrificial rituals online on the big day are now a new way to honor one’s ancestors and those one loves. You don’t need to travel all the way to visit the tombs. This is becoming popular with some people. But this kind of sacrificial ritual is questioned by some traditionalists. They believe the new approach ignores the millennia-old tradition and dismisses the real purpose of paying homage to one’s ancestors.
Supporters counter that an ancestral sacrifice is all about expressing grief， respect， condolences and that formality is mere formality. They argue that the internet is already part of modern life and the internet changes the way we mourn. As more and more people just work somewhere else so far away from home， they just don’t have time to travel to and fro.
Well， things do change. If one pays attention only to the formality， a festival may fade and cease to be important. Qingming Festival is a special day important to those who are alive and those who are dead， to those who are old and those who are young. What matters is humanity in the festival. If the young invent ways to carry on humanity in the festival， let them and embrace the new ways they find to express their love， respect， grief， and condolences.
思念与感恩
每年清明节，已故台湾艺人柯受良的胞弟柯受雄总会雇一条小渔船，漂漂荡荡一个半小时来到浙江渔山列岛，祭奠他的先祖；意大利华侨姜文耀也会拖家带口从米兰飞回浙江青田，来这里寻找他的根……
“梨花风起正清明，游子寻春半出城。”清明时节，万物复苏，空气清朗，草木滋长，但更重要的是，远在海外的游子会千里迢迢归国寻根，缅怀祖先、寄托乡愁。
祭祖、寻根，因这里是每一个海外游子的家，他们从这里出发走向世界各地，也通过这里完成身份的回归和文化的传承。
去年清明节，旅居美国纽约州的华侨老叶，携家人踏上回浙江的祭祖之旅。“这次回到家乡，当年的水稻田和池塘都不见了，看到的是新建的厂房、新居，还有正在兴建的美丽公路，就在村边穿过，家乡的变化实在是太大了。”老�~说。“两美浙江”建设让他对自己的家乡更多了一份自豪。老叶说，回乡祭祖是落叶归根的体现，尽管多年在异国他乡，依然忘不了家乡的一草一木。他要孩子们不要忘记故土，并为家乡的发展做些力所能及的事情，报答家乡的父老乡亲。今年，老叶打算带着已经毕业工作的儿子和儿媳妇一起回国祭祖，要他们永远不要忘记自己来自何处。
事实上，清明时节回乡祭祀先祖只是外在仪式，更多萦绕心头的是那动人的乡愁。席慕蓉说，乡愁是一棵没有年轮的树，永不老去。在我们还是孩提时，家乡那袅娜炊烟、如抹山影、软语乡音是那样的任性不经意，而在离别乡土，孜孜以求追寻生活目标时，承载着生于斯长于斯的乡愁又是那样的真切如潮涌。
每到清明节，雪柔都特别高兴，这个在杭州大城市长大的孩子，对爸爸出身的那个临安小山村充满了好奇。对爸爸来说，回乡是一解乡愁，对孩子来说，清明意味着回归自然。“春暖花开――而且有很多花儿开了，树林中、田野里、河边、湖畔的空气清新。出门散散步赏赏花，心情也好。”雪柔的妈妈说。
有首歌唱道：“生活不止眼前的苟且，还有诗和远方的田野。”如今，城市的节奏越来越快，互联网带来的新的思维和模式，更让人不觉间会有茫然，而能给自己一片宁静的诗和远方的田野，莫过于慢下脚步，寻回儿时的感觉。“故乡，那儿时的纯真和嬉戏，那无关名利情仇的乡里乡亲，就是我们清明时节寄怀乡愁的丰饶情感和认知价值。”在笔者采访中，一位大学教授如是说。
祭者，记也。是亲人，也是乡愁。
传承与创新
清明节传承至今已有2500多年的历史，时代虽然在变，但清明的节日文化一直被代代相传并不断丰富。
有一种意见认为，清明扫墓人数下降，甚至很多人把清明节过成了休闲旅游的节日，是民族优秀传统淡化的表现。但笔者认为，要说到传统，批评把清明节过成了休闲旅游的节日，其实恰恰是对清明传统理解的误差，因为清明节本来又叫“踏青节”，时届清明，草长莺飞、万物吐绿，春游踏青本来就是和扫墓祭祖一样悠久的传统。
历朝历代都有很多描写清明春游的诗词，就是一个旁证。所谓“梨花风起正清明，游子寻春半出城。日暮笙歌收拾去，万株杨柳属流莺”。就连宋代的理学家程颢都写诗描述清明踏青、流连忘返的情景：“莫辞盏酒十分劝，只恐风花一片红。况是清明好天气，不妨游衍莫忘归。”古人在清明结伴出游，回归自然、舒展精神，同时开展荡秋千、蹴鞠、马球、插柳等一系列休闲、公益和体育活动。说到这里，其实我们现代人工作压力大、强度高，生活节奏快、紧张，清明踏青出游更有必要。
另外，网上祭奠是近年来兴起的一种新型的祭奠方式，在网上就可以祭奠亲人，不必亲自去墓地便可以实现祭祖的目的。网上祭奠具有众多优势，在年轻一代中流传较广，但也有很多人对此产生质疑，认为这样一种形式丢弃了中国几千年的传统，失去了祭祖的真正目的。
而支持网上祭奠的人则认为，祭祖重在表达哀思，不拘泥于形式。互联网改变了我们的生活，成为我们现代生活中的一部分。由于互联网的参与，使得祭奠方式也发生了变革。这是现代生活的一种特色，是符合现代社会发展的一种趋势。更何况现在异地工作的人占比越来越大，很多人离家千里，即便有清明假，也没有足够的时间回乡。
笔者认为，任何事物都会随着岁月的流逝、时代的更替不断地演变甚至消亡。如果仅仅注重某种形式，那么，一个节日的意义也就被淡化甚至消解了。对于清明这样一个男女老幼共同参与的特殊日子，更需要注重和传承的是它的人文精神。所以，这并不是一个纯粹思念故人的日子。为了让新一辈的年轻人也能对这个节日有更深刻的理解并以自己的方式接纳它、延续它，不妨在传承中有所创新，融入各种现代元素，使之成为大家喜闻乐见的活动。
Qingming Festival in early April is a key event in Chinese life： it looks back to ancestors and it looks to future. People sweep tombs and conduct sacrificial ceremonies to remember and honor the deceased. And people go out to enjoy and embrace the sunny world that is young and lovely again in springtime.
For many Chinese， they come home to visit their ancestors’ tombs on the Qingming Festival. Some even travel across the world. On the day， Ke Shouxiong， a Taiwanese， hires a small fishing boat and takes a 90-minute trip across the sea to visit the ancestral bombs in Yushan Islands in East China Sea. Jiang Wanyao， an overseas Chinese living in Milan， Italy， comes home with his family to visit his ancestral roots in Qingtian in southern Zhejiang. Visiting one’s ancestral tombs in hometown on Qingming is a ritual for many. What they relive on that big day are memories of the past and home and the fond sentiments attached to the memories.
Qingming Festival is more than 2，500 years old in China. The festival remains unchanged but new elements are introduced. Some people say that the Qingming Festival wasn’t as important as it used to be as suggested by the decreasing numbers of people who visit the tombs of their beloved. Many treat the festival as an enjoyable holiday. Some even conclude that the tradition is phasing out. Traditionally， however， Qingming Festival is by no means merely about tomb sweeping. It is also about enjoying springtime. There are numerous ancient poems describing the happy outings on the day. If one goes through these poems， one can well know how ancient people enjoyed recreational activities during the day in early April. They played on a swing， played polo and Cuju football， and they planted willow trees.
Sacrificial rituals online on the big day are now a new way to honor one’s ancestors and those one loves. You don’t need to travel all the way to visit the tombs. This is becoming popular with some people. But this kind of sacrificial ritual is questioned by some traditionalists. They believe the new approach ignores the millennia-old tradition and dismisses the real purpose of paying homage to one’s ancestors.
Supporters counter that an ancestral sacrifice is all about expressing grief， respect， condolences and that formality is mere formality. They argue that the internet is already part of modern life and the internet changes the way we mourn. As more and more people just work somewhere else so far away from home， they just don’t have time to travel to and fro.
Well， things do change. If one pays attention only to the formality， a festival may fade and cease to be important. Qingming Festival is a special day important to those who are alive and those who are dead， to those who are old and those who are young. What matters is humanity in the festival. If the young invent ways to carry on humanity in the festival， let them and embrace the new ways they find to express their love， respect， grief， and condolences.