As Wednesday is Lunar New Year for 2025, ushering in the Year of the Wood Snake, I got curious about snake symbolism in the Chinese Zodiac. A connection I hadn’t made but seems obvious in retrospect is the Legend of the White Snake. This story embodies many themes of the snake.
Because of their ability to shed their skins, snakes represent transformation, death and rebirth. Fittingly, the Legend of the White Snake undergoes an almost complete reversal as it has been retold over the centuries. The plot begins as a simple fable: An innocent man is tricked by some form of snake demon posing as a human woman, and a religious figure steps in to unmask the trick and save the victim.
It’s a classic scenario in a nice story that can be retold over and over, but as tends to happen with stories, the form shifts. Somehow, the White Snake becomes more and more sympathetic until she and her Green Snake girlfriend become the proactive heroes of the story, navigating a world where snake/human relationships are forbidden.
I think that the White Snake embodies many of the positive traits of the snake zodiac sign in general. She is loyal and clever. Like wood, she “grows” into the roles of wife and mother, even though this makes her vulnerable to supernatural meddling.
The way this snake story changed with retelling made me think of the news cycle. In a newspaper, we have a duty to research a story and tell it accurately when it comes to our attention. We can’t put down a knee-jerk reaction that misrepresents a situation, or tell the story that’s more inspiring rather than the one that corresponds to reality.
However, once we put the story down in print, we’re not in control of the way it might evolve. Back in Dec. 2024, we ran a story about Fremont Fire Department Chief Zoraida Diaz taking an advisory role with the State Board of Fire Services to promote better fire safety and awareness. In January, the need for this organization became clear with the devastating wildfires in LA, which required firefighting teams to coordinate from around California, fighting fires from the air and ground.
(Interestingly, the element Wood in the Chinese Zodiac fuels Fire, which in turn fuels Earth.)
The next week, we welcomed a new fire company in Fremont. This story wouldn’t have the same resonance in another context. The news cycle has shown how critical fire safety work is, and that we can be proud of how our local officials prioritize this infrastructure that many take for granted until it’s urgently needed.
Terming news a “cycle” in itself calls up the image of a snake changing forms. So I’m happy to be part of telling the stories as they grow.
