Fire Tiger

Lunar New Year fell on Feb 13. Anyone born before that date belongs to the previous year (Ox).

Tigers carry a warmth that moves first. They are the one suggesting the restaurant, the first to type yes in the group chat, the one checking the route while already walking. It is not fearlessness; it is that standing still feels worse than taking the wrong turn. To other people they read as direct, easy, brave. What is less visible is how well they remember disappointment, and who did not follow when they went first. They will not bring it up, and they will not forget it either. Hand them a map and they will fold it into a pocket and follow the smell of something happening.

Bing is the noon sun, Yin the tiger in the hills that will not step aside, and both are packed into a stove whose walls hold the heat in. People like this flare brightly but do not burn at random; even their anger picks a place. They speak loudest on ground they own, and go quiet past that line. When it truly matters they hit the table first, then finish the job. They do not hold grudges; the fire is over once it is out, while the room is still blinking.