One minute read. Written by Agastya Sharma, a grade 6 student.

2020. Year of the rat. Normally, if a rat gets into our home, we whack it with a broom to make it run away.

So, what is the year of the rat?

The Chinese zodiac (or Sheng Xiao in the native language) is based in a cycle of twelve years. In this, each year is related to a certain animal. The rat is first in the cycle. After the rat comes the ox, then the tiger, and so on. So, 2020 is the year of the Rat.

Although people do not find rats very appealing, and the word often finds itself used as a slanderous phrase, the rat signifies spirit wit and vitality. The lucky colours attributed to this zodiac are green, blue and gold. People born in years that are rat zodiacs are acute in nature, which makes them successful businessmen. They are sophisticated and and popular in social interactions. They are also very outgoing and adapt to new circumstances easily.

But, as always, with good comes bad. The main weaknesses of rat zodiacs are that they are very picky and timid. Chinese astrology suggests that 2020 is a good year for rat zodiacs in terms of wealth and career prospects.

People like Mozart, Shakespeare and George Washington were born in years of the rat.

The year of the rat is considered to be auspicious. But, 2020, a rat year, is when the coronavirus is at its peak. Ironic, isn’t it?

Let’s hope that the year looks up and doesn’t end like it started. And let’s hope that 2021, the year of the ox, is more preferable than this year.

Tell us what year were you born in?

Written by Agastya Sharma
Agastya is a grade 6 student who is passionate about reading and writing.