dumpling festival

the annual dumpling festival was last weekend. held to raise money for shu ren , the parent support group for the mandarin program this event is something i look forward to each winter. what's not to like about a plate full of dumplings, scallion pancakes and edemame washed down with some sprite, topped off with a fortune cookie. my mouth waters thinking of the scallion pancakes i ate for breakfast on the streets of bejing every day i was there. a bit o memory lane for me.

the highlight of the dumpling festival is the dance performance. dance is offered after school to everyone at woodstock. the teacher is a woman from china who’s name is zhang li, which is also ruby’s name. she is very serious and strict, but her face lights up when she dances.

the kids learn different dances for each grade. in kindergarten they start with a drum dance. to the tinny sounds of traditional chinese music blaring through a cheap cd player, the kids learn the moves and steps . i saw old women in the streets of china dancing to the same music and using the same props. there is something sweet to me about that.

there is something wonderful about seeing a sea of little girls dressed in costume, waiting to perform. so patiently lined up , proud of the twirly skirts, drums and ribbons they will use in the dance. they sat by class at the foot of the stage , waiting their turns.
when the music began, i noticed that the sea of girls was moving . the older girls were sitting , doing the dances they had learned in years past while waiting to perform the dance they perfected this year.

when the kindergartners took the stage, i smiled in amusement. some were doing this , some were doing that. a few were doing the same thing at the same time. they haven’t been at this long enough to really know the steps. out in the audience i could see zhang li smiling and dancing with them, her steps showing them the way.