The Dance of Free Spirit

Many years ago, I saw a TV program about the Thanksgiving celebration in the United States. At the time, I knew very little about American culture. What struck me was a line of American girls dancing at the Times Square in New York City, kicking and swinging their beautiful long legs over their heads. It was not any kind of dancing I was familiar with, but the dance overflowed with the free spirit and enthusiasm that I had never experienced before.

It left a deep imprint in my memory. It was, of course, when I was still in China. It must be in the eighties, when China was just open to the west.

Now, I know this free-spirit dance is the Radio City Rockettes show. For more than three quarters of a century, the Radio City Rockettes has become the world's most famouse precision dance. It appeared on numerous historical moments, from Super Bowl, to annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, to the 2001 Presidential Inauguration, the Rockettes have become an American icon.

This Thanksgiving, I had a chance to see the miraculous Rockettes with my American family in Chicago. I witnessed their famous eye-high kicks and spetacular precision dance with the same vigor and joy that first breathed the free spirit into my world.

To millions of people, the Radio City Rockettes is the legendary force of entertainment. To me, it is a dance of free spirit.

Poetess Dream

I dreamed to become a poetess as a child.

I don’t know whether it’s part of cultural training or it’s purely from my own will, I literally recited 300 famous classic poems from Tang and Song dynasties at the age of ten.

The rhetorical lyric of the words and the musicality of the rhymes in the poems captured my heart dearly. I immersed myself in a world of beauty and passion....

As a teenager, I tried to write many poems, and even managed to publish a few. I was convinced that if I ever had a talent, it must be in writing poems!

Apparently, I didn't turn out to be a poetess. As worldly as I am, it was never meant to be. Nevertheless, my love for poetry has become a lifetime passion.

Coming to America and being in another language didn’t stop me from enjoying poetry. Reading poems and reflecting upon the meanings not only give me a sense of grace, but also let me keep in perspective the things around me.

Good poems are timeless and borderless. Looking at my bookshelf, there are increasing collections of the poems from John Keats, Tagore, Robert Frost, Rumi....

Among my favorite poets, Khalil Gibran certainly stands out. His poems A Tear and A Smile, The Prophet, and The Creation are the masterpieces utterly out-of-this-world.

"I would not exchange the sorrows of my heart for the joys of the multitude. And I would not have the tears that sadness makes to flow from my every part turn into laughter. I would rather that I died in yearning and longing than that I lived weary and despairing. I want the hunger for love and beauty to be in the depths of my soul... "

Gilbran's poems glimpse into the mystery of the universe and touch upon the very essence of our beings.... I consider Gilbran's poems the most awe-inspiring works after the Holy Writings such as The Bible, The Koran, and The Kitáb-i-Aqdas.

Although I have never become a poetess myself, through poetry, I see the world unseen.

poetry, poetess, literature, Gilbran, poets

LINES Ballet

I have always been a ballet lover. The MOROCCAN Project, world premiere, by Alonzo King's LINES Ballet is one of the most extraordinary ballets I have ever seen.

Performed at San Francisco Yerba Beuna Center of the Arts, the swift and elegant lines of dancers accompanied with the haunting voices of Moroccan singers created a luminous aesthetic effect on the stage. It took me to a far-flung land where life is not much more than the sun, the earth, the men and women... Like everyone in the audience, I enjoyed it exorbitantly.

LINES finds inspiration from traditional music in the world. It has collaborated with many exceptional musicians such as legendary jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders and India's national treasure Zakir Hussain to create magnificent and dynamic dances.

In 2004, at its 25th anniversary season, LINES Ballet performed eight sold-out shows in Lyon, France and was featured at the Venice Biennal Festal.

I find LINES Ballet's unique angle of presenting original ballet in combination with contemporary musicians from diverse cultural traditions very innovative and unprecedented. It brings new spirit and dynamics to this classical art.

Starbucks Anywhere

I was never a coffee-drinker until Starbucks. I don't remember how it happened - before I realized it, a cup of "tall decaf mocha" became part of my daily routines.

I secretly doubt they put some additive ingredient into the coffee. To test it out, I went to taste the Italian coffee at Niebaum-Coppola on the University Ave. of Palo Alto, and French coffee at La Baguette in Stanford Shopping Center. Maybe because I am not a professional coffee drinker, although those coffees have some exotic flavor, they are not as addictive as Starbucks'.

One amazing thing about the Starbucks coffee is the consistency of its quality. The Starbucks coffee in Vienna tasted almost exactly the same with the Starbucks coffee in Shanghai. What's even more amazing is the consistency of its price, regardless of income levels of the different countries. With GDP per capita only $1,100 (compared with GDP per capita $27,000 in the US), the Starbucks in Shanghai are packed with local Shanghaineses along with the expatriates and foreigners.

One thing different, though, is the size. In both Asia and Europe, they don't have size "ventti." They have "short", "tall" and "grande". Sometimes, people say "small", "medium" and "large". So, if you are not careful, you may mess up "tall" with "short". :-)

Well, I love Starbucks coffee, period. Following the moderation rule, I discipline myself to drink one Starbucks coffee a day.

lifestyle, Starbucks,travel, cultures, coffee,

Home, Sweet Home

One of my hobbies is home decoration. I am not an artist, but the process of decorating my home is such a process of creation and self-expression that I enjoy it immensely.

When I look at a wall, a table, or an empty corner, my inner voice would tell me: it needs a modern impression painting, a lavish table cloth, a green plant or statue that has Michelangelo touch.... Not all the time the right ideas or images will come to me immediately. Sometime I have to meditate and wait... It's a combination of what the silent house wants to tell me and what I want to create - maybe they are the same thing.

I have the same obsession for our garden - my husband would correct me saying it's a yard and not a garden; I insisted to call it garden because I think that's what is supposed to be. We are living in a fast-pace society with computers and busy high-ways. It's almost a luxury to lay down on a piece of green lawn, smell the fragrance of flowers and listen to the singing of birds. Yet it's an integrated part of our lives that should not be neglected.

I think the place we live is not just a place, it is a way to express who we are. It reflects our inner beings that desire for beauty, love, perfection and excellence. This may sound bizarre to some people, but at least this is how I look at it.

I told my husband that I want to make our home "a paradise on earth." I would want to make the whole world a paradise on earth if I could! But at least I can start with myself.

lifestyle, home, decoration, good life, garden