About 600 students from grade 5,6, and 7 of Tzu Chi School attended the ‘Meet and Greet with My Dream’ performers at Jing Si Hall, Tzu Chi Center on July 18, 2019. The Meet and Greet was opened by Head of Tzu Chi Humanistic Mission, Mr Mansjur Tandiono. In his opening speech, he emphasised that ‘In life, people can be lack of something but your dreams must go on,’. The event was hosted by Anthony and Zhang Jing of DAAI TV, with guests coming from My Dream were Wei Jing Yang, Liu Yidan, Yu Yu, and Tan Wei Hai. Aside from My Dream show, Jing Si Hall also welcomed two other guests representing Mitra Netra foundation, Okky Kurnia and Juwita Maulida. 

History

My Dream is a music and dance show performed by the China Disabled People’s Performing Art Troupe (CDPPAT). The organisation was founded in 1987 and consists of performers with sight, hearing, mental and motor disabilities or speech impairments. 

The other two guests come from Mitra Netra foundation, which was founded in 1991 to improve the lives of people with sight impairments with education and music. These musical talents are channeled through a group called Saung Harmoni. 

Never Give Up on Your Dreams

On this occasion, these guests were given the chance to share their stories, which are hoped to inspire students to achieve their dreams, no matter what. One of the stories was of Ms Wei Jing Yang. Ms Yang was very energetic since she was very little, however, her being deaf made her parents thought dancing was impossible. Ms Yang were never allowed to properly dance, ‘My parents thought how could I dance if I can’t even listen to music?’ she said. That thought soon changed when Ms Yang and her family celebrated the Chinese New Year in 2005, in which CDPPAT did a dance performance. It was an eye-opening experience for her parents, so for Ms Yang’s tenth birthday, she was allowed to dance and join CDPPAT.  

Being a professional dancer requires hours of training, high discipline, and ability to memorise every step precisely. Dancers are sensitive to music beats, which makes it sound impossible for these hearing impaired dancer to achieve. The key for their training is held by their instructor. Thanks to their patience, diligence, and discipline--this instructor acts as a visual music. Li Hua, one of the instructors explained her method of directing, ‘I need to master certain hand gestures to make sure they move the right way, at the right rhythm,’

Another inspiring story came from Okky Kurnia of Mitra Netra foundation, despite his disabilities,  Okky now teaches computer and music at Mitra Netra foundation. ‘Learning computer allows me to not miss any information.You can do anything with a computer, and since I became a teacher, I have learned many keyboard shortcuts for the visually impaired, which are very useful to replace the function of the mouse, so we can catch up with others,’

Stunning Musical Performance

In this occasion, both My Dream and Saung Harmoni presented a special performance for students. For My Dream team, Ms Yang performed a solo Peacock Dance while her fellow performer, Liu Yidan danced the signature Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva (the thousand hands dance) with her troupe. A very special performance was presented by My Dream’s er hu’s and flute players with Saung Harmoni’s angklung’s players by performing Indonesian children song ‘Ampar Ampar Pisang’. 

The Meet and Greet Event was deemed as a blessing for children, that they are privileged to see with their own eyes, how discipline and perseverance could help anyone to achieve their dreams. One of the students, Zen Nicole, of 7 Harmony, said that seeing these dancers and musicians able to perform so greatly despite their disabilities, encouraged her to study harder. ‘I will definitely work harder and study more, if they can achieve their best, I can too,’ 

Both Ms Iing Felicia and Ms Caroline Widjanarko, school principals of Tzu Chi Early Childhood and Tzu Primary, respectively, expressed their gratitude for the opportunities for students to see these performance live. 

‘When I go back to my school, I will tell teachers to remind children to love themselves, and to be grateful for their body that they were given, and to strive for their dreams,’ said Ms Iing.

Gratefulness is one of Tzu Chi school’s main values. One of the sessions in Tzu Chi’s humanistic culture class (ren wen) once asked children to put one hand at the back, then to tie a pen with only one hand. Through this practice, they learn how to appreciate their capabilities and support each other within disabilities. 

My Dream music and dance shows are scheduled to perform in three big cities in Indonesia, namely, Jakarta, Medan, and Surabaya from July 20 to August 4.