Wood Tiger

Lunar New Year fell on Feb 14. 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.

Geng is hard iron, Yin the tiger that keeps its own company and its own ground. Pine and cypress grow out of cracks in rock, straighter as the wind rises, holding their needles through winter. People like this have a hard spine and will not drift from a chosen road. They do not turn easily and do not ask for help, swallowing the bitter part. Faced with something too heavy, they would rather stand than bow, which is sometimes strength and sometimes a load. They do not complain, dress their own wounds, and say it is nothing when asked.