A life-long dedication – Movie Review: Havana Divas

I was not prepared for entertaining elements when I chose the film “Havana Divas”, knowing that it was a documentary. I found the Chinese name “古巴花旦” very inviting, though. The movie turned out to be very enjoyable for its own sake.

It is about two Cuban ladies, now in their late eighties, who have been singing Yueju (Cantonese opera songs) since childhood, first as a means of livelihood and later for their interest. Brought up in poverty, Caridad Amaran(何秋蘭) and Georgina Wong Guitarrez(黃美玉) enjoyed little material comfort, and Yueju probably gave them satisfaction which they would have been deprived of otherwise. Their efforts are appreciable, considering their Cuban ancestral origin; they had to struggle with practically every single Chinese character to master the lyrics. 

The film includes quite a few still photos carefully selected from the two ladies’ collections. While depicting their growth, they also cast light on the historical development of Cuba with glimpses of the political turmoil following the seizure of power by the Communists resulting in a closed-door policy for decades. It is fun watching old-fashioned cars still moving on the roads, and cracked walls and broken road surfaces are a common sight. However, the locals look happy and contented with their austere lifestyle, often smiling gleefully into the director’s camera. Caridad(秋蘭) talked about once sleeping in the street without sounding whiny while Georgina (美玉) happily shared about her encounter with the young Fidel Castro  (卡斯特羅) on his visit to her school. 

There are also pictures of well known Cantonese opera actors and actresses of the past generations. Some, still healthy and cheerful despite their old age, chat happily about their stage performances back in those days. It is surprising how they survived the Great Depression by acting nonstop day and night to keep themselves in employment during the post-war era. The songs accompanying the pictures or short video clips are reminiscent of the time when Yueju was all the rage in those days.

The film is known to have been shown in a number of places previously with the post-screening appearance of the two ladies on a few occasions. Seeing the two old ladies greeted with a standing ovation each time, I was moved to tears. Those were tears of joy and appreciation. Indeed, their life-long dedication to Yueju is worth our great admiration and has inspired us with a life lesson about striving hard to achieve a goal.

A Remarkable Lenten Experience

Time flies! In the wink of an eye, the Holy Week has arrived, thus drawing the Lenten season to an end. Am I satisfied with my progress along the Lenten journey?

In retrospect, while admitting to occasional failure to resist temptation in the forms of tantalizing food, mobile phone overuse and unworthy thoughts, I can also claim to have benefited from spiritual enrichment opportunities, the most constructive being my participation in our Parish Lenten Retreat. 

The retreat, which focused on the theme “ Learning from Our Lady’s Passovers”, was divided into five sessions, the first four taking place on Friday evenings and the last, also the climax, on a Saturday afternoon.

Each of the Friday retreat sessions began with the reading of a Bible passage related to the life of Our Lady. After that, the lector talked about her reflection on the reading for about fifteen minutes, inspiring us attendants with our Lady’s virtues, which could be put into practice in our own lives. The sharing was then followed by a brief moment of silence to allow the Bible verses to sink in. The rest of the time was dedicated to Eucharistic Adoration.

Frankly, I was a bit worried when the schedule of the Friday spiritual gathering was first announced as my experience of Eucharistic Adoration had never been promising. Actively engaged in one way or another almost every minute of the day, I used to find it impossible to be faithfully involved in the practice. I could not understand how the people around me managed to spend a long hour sitting or even kneeling in silence with the eyes fixed on the monstrance, containing the Sacred Host. 

Now, however, I can look back with satisfaction and pride on the change in my attitude. Everyone of those Friday evenings saw me sitting or kneeling in adoration, gazing upon Jesus, meditating or praying to him. There was no more fidgeting or frowning over the dragging time. What had brought about the change?

It was all due to the inspiration from the fifteen-minute Bible talk. The verses selected to match the main theme provided focuses to meditate on. Inspired by the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, for example, I reflected on my failure to respond to God’s calls with humility and obedience as Our Lady did. Besides, the Holy family’s escape to Egypt from Herod’s massacre of the innocents showed us Mary’s ability to brave life’s challenges and turn risks into opportunities. My thoughts then drifted to the obstacles and hurdles in my own life and I wondered how I could overcome them with a peaceful state of mind like Mary’s. Moreover, we learned from Jesus’ first miracle in the wedding in Cana about Mary’s caring concern for her friends’ needs. Finally, the disciples’ being entrusted to the care of Mary reminded us to be faithful to our promise of companionship. I also talked with Jesus, communicating with Him the thoughts generated from my meditation, seeking support from him and asking Him for forgiveness of my failings. In fact, there seemed so much I would like to share with Him that I was not aware of the passing time. 

In brief, though my planned Lenten practices have not been fully implemented, I am grateful that I have gradually learned to appreciate the power and beauty of the intimate encounter with Jesus. Eucharistic Adoration will always be an important part of my faith and I will treasure the opportunity to fully embrace the silent moments with Jesus.