I love to make an entrance. Having a background in theatre, there are few things that excite me more than the first time you walk onto the stage for the first time in a role. There is a rush of adrenaline unlike any other. You take a breath, say a prayer that you will remember your lines, and then just walk out.\u00a0Those same feelings\u00a0have been brought up when I have made other significant entrances in my life. Before I walked down the isle to meet my soon-to-be husband; when I walked into my first class of graduate school; when I walked through the door of my office having just landed my dream job. Every time, I was struck by the fact that there is so much to be said in the power of an entrance. But the way you enter on stage is unique. You have the power to change the trajectory of an entire performance. If you reject the show that is happening around you, you cause pain, frustration, and anxiety of your fellow actors, and disbelief of the story you are portraying. But if you enter when you are meant to, in a way in which adds to the story, the story is so much greater because of your role.<\/p>\n
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1841. 1966. There was an entrance in each of these years changed the trajectory of a little port city in\u00a0China called Hong Kong<\/p>\n
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On January 26, 1841, the British authorities officially took\u00a0possession\u00a0of the island of Hong Kong. [1]<\/a> What began as a desire to export tea, silk, and later opium, dramatically shifted the landscape for Hong Kong for years to come.[2]<\/a> The Modern History of Hong Kong covered in explicit detail the foundations of the British rule in Hong Kong, and how England was involved in the country until 1977.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n By the seventeenth century, Britain had a deep dependency on China for tea.[3]<\/a> When the British could no longer afford their tea habit, they smuggled opium from India, another of their colonies, into China. What began as\u00a0Britians dependency on exports, created a dependency on Chinese illegal imports of illegal drugs. [4]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n As time went on, things did not get better for the Chinese. From the very foundation of the British rule, it was made quite clear to the\u00a0Chinese\u00a0inhabitants of the Canton City how their ruling government felt about them. “In short, the British Empire acquired Hong Kong first and foremost to promote its economic interests in China, and only secondarily to support diplomatic contacts for which naval and military backup was required\u201d.[5]<\/a> Furthermore, as the British rule gained momentum in China, the minority government\u00a0chose not to give appropriate representation to the Chinese residents, who were the majority of the population.[6]<\/a> Over the years, the British set up neat and tidy spaces for themselves to live in, and created roads and walls that divided the Chinese and the Westerners.[7]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n From the start of their entrance to their reluctant hand off, Britain shaped the country of Hong Kong. By the time the exited, “The Chinese identity that most residents of Hong Kong subscribed to in the early 1980’s was a complex and convoluted one”.[8]<\/a> It’s incredibly evident that Britain entered the stage play of life in China in a way that negatively altered so much of the life of the Chinese individuals there. While not all their contributions were negative, the overwhelming majority of their presence caused, pain, frustration, and much anxiety.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1966 was the year that Jackie Pullinger moved to Hong Kong. Pullinger, while also being British, made a much less dramatic entrance, but nonetheless had a significant impact. In her book, Chasing the Dragon, Pullinger tells the story of her “Slow Boat to China”[9]<\/a>. She retells the story of her own rush of adrenaline, each time she enters the Walled City. She says “The second time I went into the Walled City, I had this wonderful feeling inside; like the thrill\u00a0you get on your birthday. I found myself wondering why I was so happy. And the next time I went into the Walled City, I had exactly the same sensation. This was not reasonable – of all the revolting places in the world. And yet nearly every time I was in the underground city over the next dozen years, I was to feel the same joy. I had caught a glimpse of it at confirmation, and again when I had really accepted Jesus into my life – and now to find it in this profane place?”[10]<\/a> As we discussed last week, the impact of Pullinger’s work was quite significant, and to this day, Pullinger’s entrance into the grand narrative of China was one that brought overwhelming joy, healing, and restoration. She made an entrance that contributed to the story that God was writing in China. And because of that, her legacy as a\u00a0prominent actor in this particular story, it’s characters were forever changed.<\/p>\n _____<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Tsang, Steve Yui-Sang. A Modern History of Hong Kong.<\/em> London (New York: I.B. Tauris, 2004), 11.<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> Ibid, 5.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> Ibid, 5.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> voxdotcom. \u201cHow 156 Years of British Rule Shaped Hong Kong.\u201d\u00a0YouTube<\/em>, YouTube, 18 July 2018, www.youtube.com\/watch?v=StW7oGSR_Mg.<\/p>\n [5]<\/a> Tsang, Steve Yui-Sang. A Modern History of Hong Kong.<\/em> London (New York: I.B. Tauris, 2004), 21.<\/p>\n [6]<\/a> Ibid, 25.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> voxdotcom. \u201cHow 156 Years of British Rule Shaped Hong Kong.\u201d\u00a0YouTube<\/em>, YouTube, 18 July 2018, www.youtube.com\/watch?v=StW7oGSR_Mg.<\/p>\n [8]<\/a> Tsang, Steve Yui-Sang. A Modern History of Hong Kong.<\/em> London (New York: I.B. Tauris, 2004), 125.<\/p>\n