Being new to BSM, I was pretty excited about my first International Evening. Word had been circulating about it for weeks, and I was looking forward to all the costumes, performances and, of course, food.
What I did not expect to experience, however, was being part of the opening parade. I dressed up as Lady Liberty (crown and all) when I went to school Thursday morning. But nearer to 5pm, as I watched kids lining up behind their respective flags to enter Don Jones field, Beth asked if I would walk behind the flag of USA. I wasn’t sure what was going on, but I went with it. I was amazed by the costumes of the people around me; the details on them were absolutely stunning (I even saw three little Chinese lion dancers running about!), and all were worn with pride. It was inspiring to see designs from all different cultures brought together through these excited, intermingling kids. The little ones were also given helium balloons, some of which floated up to the covered court ceiling before the parade even began. Briefly, I wondered how long it would take for the kids to lose all the balloons provided.
Then the parade began. We marched around the field, waving our flags and smiling for the bystanders, until we all piled up onstage, a quasi-ordered jumble of colors and noise. The national anthems were sung, although I honestly couldn’t hear much of the words through the chatter onstage.
There was a brief applause after the anthems. Then a piano track started up, accompanied by a young, sweet voice; the cameras showed that it was from one of our very own parade marchers. Suddenly, near the song’s climax, the kids onstage let out a collective cheer, and all at once dozens of red, white and yellow balloons flew up into the sky. I had been expecting this moment, and thought I’d be petulantly sour at all those good balloons going to waste. But instead, I had to admit that it was a beautiful sight. Others must have agreed with me, as cellphones were whipped out of pockets to capture the whole thing. In a strange way, I felt happy watching those colorful specks rise, over the city buildings, up into the blue sky, as one big mass. It seemed the perfect way to start off a festival that celebrated the unity so strived for around the world.
The rest of the night was a blast. Of course, I happily sampled food from all around the world, from prize-winning Victoria sandwiches to spiced Indian samosas, from sweet Korean sikhye drinks to hot and steaming Irish stew. Everything tasted delicious and was clearly made with effort and love. But it wasn’t only the food that was the highlight of the night; the performances by students, parents, and staff were also amazing to watch. To name just a few, there was a traditional Filipino Ati-Atihan dance, a tribute to the Swedish ABBA band, a multi-language rendition of Frozen’s “Let it Go”, and a wonderful father-daughters duet to a traditional Irish song—and all of these colorful and lively performances among others showcased the diversity present in our current world, or at least in our current school. But the best part for me was that everyone showed pride in their own nationality, yet at the same time respected others. People appreciated and sometimes even partook in activities from cultures outside of their own, in the spirit of true internationality.
Unfortunately, I had to leave half an hour before the night drew to an official close. I grabbed one last Australian lamington, gushingly hugged the TARDIS near the gates, and rode home. Although the night was brief and still mostly about food, clothing and dance on the surface, and although I have been known to be a naïve idealist, I still took some comfort in realizing that, at least for one evening, people were proud to showcase their own beliefs and traditions, and accept others’ as well. In short, my first International Evening did not fail my expectations: in fact, it left me with the impression that humanity could still learn how to work together, not by eradicating their differences, but by acknowledging them and--like those red, white and yellow helium balloons--rising up to greater horizons as one.
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