A FESTIVE CELEBRATION
OF ASIAN CULTURES
There is so much positive good that goes on in our towns and
cities at many levels, in many diverse forms and forums often
unnoticed and unheralded. These events and experiences lift our
spirit and make us more hopeful about our future as a civilization.
One such outstanding event is the Asian Festival at Brebeuf Jesuit
Preparatory School in Indianapolis. The ninth Annual Asian Festival
on March 25, 2008 was again a fun, educational, colorful, and
spirited affair.
The Festival had some familiar features: the cultural displays
of various Asian countries-
Sri Lanka, Laos, Israel, India, Pakistan, China; commercial booths
– Tibetan crafts organized by Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist
Cultural Center in Bloomington and the Henna Painting Art by Pramila
Shah. Clusters of colorful balloons and large inflated parrots
hung from the ceiling floating overhead, and multi-colored posters
decorated the walls throughout the Multi-Purpose Room.
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The room was transformed into a festive feast for the eyes and
senses: an Indian brocaded silk draped canopy as a gateway, several
tables with bright tablecloths reserved for faculty and honored
guests; a large stage graced with a photo-mural of The Golden
Temple in Amritsar, India framed with colorful paper drapes. The
entire space was filled with inviting aromas of Indian chicken
tikka masala, mixed vegetable, potato-peas curry, naan, Chinese
eggrolls, chicken low mein, chicken satay, and other delicious
dishes for the hungry and the brave. An attractive backdrop of
murals, saris, and signs added a special touch to the buffet area.
Beautiful North Indian music welcomed the guests to this annual
party of Asian cultures and traditions.
The two-hour Festival was a composite of serenity, exuberance,
laughter, and spectacle.
It began with an Invocation of Quranic verses and followed through
with sacred chants by the Tibetan Buddhist Monks. The audience
of several hundred students, faculty members, parents, and guests
was greeted by Mrs. Winnie Ballard, the wife of the Indianapolis
Mayor Greg Ballard, who later made a surprise appearance. Both
highlighted the importance of our growing diversity and the need
to celebrate this cultural and ethnic richness in our midst as
a major community asset.
There were the ever-favorite Indianapolis Japanese Minyo Dancers,
invited each year to perform traditional Japanese folkdances at
the Asian Festival. We were treated to a Turkish Pop Belly Dance
and Turkish Gypsy Flower Girl Dance performed by Brebeuf students
under the direction of Ms. Catalon. There was a demonstration
of the traditional Hora dance by the Jewish Student Union.
The highlight of the 2008 Asian Festival was the colorful and
vigorous Bhangra, a Punjabi folkdance and now an international
rage, under the direction of Mrs. Sonya Gill. The seven young
ladies and two young men dressed in vibrant traditional Punjabi
clothes- ladies in brocaded silks and boys in majestic turbans,
gave a tremendous account of their dancing skills and joyful spirit
to learn new things. They were joined in Bhangra by two Hoosier
Punjabis, Jagdeep Walia, a senior at Franklin Central High School
and Deepinder Gill, a senior at Hamilton Southeastern High School
in Indianapolis.
The annual Asian Festival is sponsored and presented by The Asian
Club at Brebeuf Jesuit and its faculty moderator, Mrs. Janice
Singh, and assisted by the School faculty, students, and many
devoted parents.
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REFLECTION:
How wonderful that through music and arts, dance, food, fellowship,
fun, and festive celebrations of our common humanity, our youth
are being prepared to be citizens of the world and to recognize
and appreciate a little of Asia in each one of us. Barriers and
stereotypes are being broken, ignorance and intolerance about
the unfamiliar are being dispelled, and bridges of culture are
being spanned for all of us to walk in friendship towards each
other and with each other. It is amazing to see young people exude
a spirit of optimism and excitement to make our world and theirs
more welcome and friendly. Some of these lessons and wonderful
experiences will guide them in their future pursuits and last
them a lifetime.
It all begins with taking small steps toward experiences different
from our own, in time making them our own and discovering that
there is much more in common and unifying than we realized. The
Asian Festival and other similar endeavors may be about celebration
and introduction to diverse and distant cultures, but they can
lead us toward recognizing each other as an integral part of our
shared humanity and collective heritage as a civilization.
Knowing how things were a few decades ago, I am thrilled to witness
this moving transformation in our schools, community and civic
dialogue, and daily societal encounters. As new pioneers arrive
at our shores, we should be patient to teach and eager to learn
from each other. I am imagining the power and multi-faceted potential
of this emerging attitude of thoughtful consideration among nations,
faiths, and cultures. We are beginning to admire that in an increasingly
interdependent world, our ability to connect with one another
is vital and can be very rewarding. As such, our festive gatherings
in educational settings can be bridges to something far more significant
than just to have fun, raise funds for minority scholarships,
or achieve some other immediate goal. These celebrations can be
a window to the beautiful, diverse, and fascinating world outside
and allow our spirits to grow in profound ways; may be towards
global citizenship and the realization of our common purpose as
members of One Family, One Race, placed here by a providential
decree to make a more peaceful and prosperous world for all generations.
Kanwal Prakash “KP” Singh
Indianapolis, Indiana USA
