CHARITY FOR ALL

全民慈善

A curious mix of tributaries meld together. Anxiety and trepidation surge through the stony riverbed inside my chest. I stand on the stage — alone, in the heart of a country that over a billion people call home — eagerly hoping that the rapids will swiftly subside to serenity and facilitate an indelible performance.

In recent years, the need to reestablish BYU’s presence in China weighed on the hearts of prominent leaders. After counseling together, planning commenced to send the largest touring group in BYU history across the Pacific. Rumors excitedly whispered around campus, and I immediately wanted to be involved. Before long, I found myself in the de Jong Concert Hall preparing for the China Spectacular.

As rehearsals began, the differences between our nine distinct performing groups were anxious to take center-stage. However, the collaboration brought us closer together than we ever imagined. Unity and love permeated the company, and we were eager to share that love with the people of China.

“With Malice Toward None” — a piece at the heart of the show — exemplified that purpose. The title originates from Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address. Distress and social dichotomy from the Civil War plagued our nation, but Lincoln had relentless hope for the future. Now, standing in his towering shadow over 150 years later, it was our turn to combat sociopolitical divide with a message of common humanity. As President Nelson commissioned a recent graduating class, we were to “Proclaim [our] love for all human beings ‘with malice toward none, with charity for all.’”

We had prepared extensively. Now it was time.

I step across the curtains’ threshold, trumpet in hand. A spotlight encircles me — a single soloist poised on a dark stage. A cue is given. I breathe deeply. Suddenly, my trumpet’s sound overcomes the serene silence of the eager audience, flourishing into a melody as the dancers elegantly appear center-stage and the orchestra joins in. A collaborative combination of beautiful dance and powerful music ensues until the final cadence and dancers’ stillness fade away. Silence peacefully fills the hall before it’s overpowered by the warm applause of thousands in the Chinese audience—a reciprocity of love.

In the heart of China, charity calmed the anxious rapids within my heart. As we performed for others, I recognized the need in life to reach deep within myself to open the flood gates and allow love to fill the chasms between us in our drought-ridden world.