Besides leaving our life behind, there was another great sadness for Li. ‘Mary, my brothers’ dreams of coming to America are shattered now.’ He swallowed hard. Now that we were leaving, he felt he had failed them. I understood. He was making an incredible sacrifice for his young family, for us. We had often talked about sponsoring his brothers in the early days, but it never worked out. And there was not just one brother, but six! However, Li had been helping them all these years, including helping to finance a small theme park in Qingdao that had failed.
Then I had an idea. ‘Darling, I would happily help educate your brothers’ children in Australia,’ I said. ‘I think that might be better, actually. All of them are young enough to take advantage of the Western language and culture, and this would give them a better future.’
Li nodded. But I knew his guilt persisted.
While we were preparing for our descent into Beijing Airport, most of Li’s family were on the long overnight train trip from Qingdao to see him perform the lead in Romeo and Juliet, in the place where everything had started for him. His parents, his brothers and their wives, other relatives, and some villagers, not to mention the Bandit, Fengtian, Teacher Xiao and other former teachers and classmates, were coming to see him dance. As we disembarked, I felt a rush of emotion, thinking about all that was happening for us.
For Li to perform in Beijing meant so much to him. Now here he was, in his home country – the country that had for so many years refused to ever let him return. He was about to dance in front of his own people, to show them all that he had achieved in the West in the sixteen years since he’d left China. It was overwhelming.
‘Li, it’s fate, isn’t it?’ I said. ‘We didn’t see it at the time, but it’s fate that Houston Ballet has been invited to tour China at this moment in time.’
‘Well, maybe. I just know I am so lucky. Romeo will be my first performance as a professional dancer in front of my own country and my last with Houston Ballet.’
‘What a full circle for you, Li!’ I said.
And then we saw the Bandit and Fengtian waving at us from the crowd.
Once the Li family had arrived, it was chaos. They exclaimed and doted over Tom, making a huge fuss of our little boy. Sophie was beside herself to see Nana and Yeye, who couldn’t hug her enough. We’d booked them hotel rooms and gave the Bandit and Fengtian the responsibility of showing them around Beijing.
The dance of Li’s life, this opening night, was to be broadcast live in prime time by China’s Central TV to more than 500 million people across the country. Even I couldn’t get my head around that.
A convoy of taxis took us to the theatre. Sophie and Tom were safely at the hotel being looked after by Marji. I glanced at Dia and Li’s brothers, so handsome in their suits, and Niang and the sisters-in-law, who looked elegant in their silk blouses and pants. For all of them, with the exception of Niang and Dia, this was the first time they would experience ballet and theatre. I could see the awed expressions on their faces as they spoke excitedly. We patiently lined up and took our seats with the thousands of other people in the audience. Being China, there was none of the glitz and glamour of a gala performance in America. It was all rather low-key.
Regardless, it would be one of the most important moments to Li and his family. He was finally able to come home and be recognised as an international star. I was looking forward to seeing him dance in one of my favourite ballets. I had to suppress thoughts that I would not dance the role of Juliet ever again. Then, the lights went out, the noise died down, the orchestra started the familiar music and the curtain rose. There was Li on stage. ‘My Romeo,’ I smiled, feeling so proud of him.
Li danced magnificently that night. If I had any nerves for him, they disappeared as soon as he started to move. In the part where he was sword-fighting with Tybalt, I turned and watched the faces of his family and friends. They were mesmerised. I swelled further with pride at the famous balcony pas de deux at the end of Act One. Li and his partner, Janie Parker, had the audience entranced.
In fact, the audience was sitting on the edge of their seats throughout the ballet. When Li took his curtain call, I could see he was fighting very hard to hold back tears. His family screamed and clapped wildly. The Bandit and Fengtian led the standing ovation among Li’s former teachers and classmates, and the entire audience was on its feet. There were many emotional people that night. I noticed Li’s family and Teacher Xiao’s eyes were full of tears. They were tears of pride and joy. How special it was for Li to be welcomed back this way!
Two days later, Li had to go to Shanghai with the company for two more performances. He would be away for a few days. The rest of us would return to Qingdao on the overnight train with our eight suitcases, and the children and I would wait for Li there.
Suddenly everything seemed too hard. The kids were fractious. Tom was now a two-year-old pocket rocket I couldn’t let out of my sight, and at the same time I was worried about Sophie. The entire Li family were constantly gabbling in a language I couldn’t follow, and Beijing station – well, it was Beijing station! Even buying the tickets was an ordeal. Children’s tickets were charged according to the child’s height. A heated fight broke out between Li’s brothers and the officials because Sophie was tall for her age and they demanded that we pay a higher fare accordingly. Of course, Li’s brothers would have none of that. Finally it was sorted, and we were allowed to board the train.
It was wonderful to walk into Niang and Dia’s new apartment, which we had bought for them. It had two bedrooms, a living room and a small galley kitchen. Best of all, there was a little shower room, a sink and even a toilet! They kept the apartment spotlessly clean and the beds were comfortable and warm. Dia’s small fold-out stools were squeezed around any available tables for all the brothers and sisters-in-law to make hundreds of dumplings. Then there was planning for who would help with the next meal, and the next. It was still only about food and family.
When all the little Chinese cousins came to visit, Sophie and Tom would run off with them or play on the kang. Rong Rong (seventh brother’s daughter) and Yan Yan (fifth brother’s daughter) were Sophie’s age. Lulu (third brother’s daughter) was a few years older, as were Jin Jin and Feng Feng (fourth brother’s daughters). Second brother had two older daughters, Liu Liu and Li Li, as well as their little Jie Jie. The eldest brother had a son, Jiang Jiang, about nine years old. And Tom, the only other boy in the Li family, was treated as treasure. While at times I worried about Sophie’s language with all the Chinese being spoken I decided love and family beat all. She was gaining much more in other ways.
I was relieved when Li safely returned from Shanghai. While it was wonderful to spend time with them, I couldn’t wait to get us back to Australia and settled in to our Melbourne home. I suddenly felt the weight of all we had done in the past few months, only to then have to pick up our lives again in a new place. It would take enormous energy to set up a new life for our family, including finding therapists and a school for Sophie. I felt anxious and suddenly needed to hear Coralie’s voice. I called her as soon as we got to the airport. As always, her encouraging words calmed me down.
‘Mary, I raised eight children in Rocky and your father wasn’t always there. You’re strong, I know you can do this.’