A Picture Book for Macao's Youth: Leo the Lion's Dream Delivery
That year, when my excellent students left the classroom, most of them went on to study medicine, many of whom were award-winning top students in international mathematics and science competitions, enrolling in the nation's most prestigious medical schools. As they left, we sent them off with good wishes for their future, saying, "May we meet again someday." This journey was not easy at all. Even though they were gifted before admission, during their time at the academy, I saw these young people still putting their all into learning and acquiring these professional skills. I met them again during the pandemic, when these (future) doctors were hired as nucleic acid testing personnel. And then…
One of these (soon-to-be) doctors walked into the bookstore. He told me that many of his classmates who graduated at the same time had left Macao: "Because Macao doesn't need us." I asked if they could wait a bit longer, as a large medical center on the island was about to open, perhaps... "Can't wait any longer. Why should we be stuck in this limbo?"
When you are a lion in Macao…
This book, "Leo the Lion's Dream Delivery," was published on January 1st this year. As a recommender, my feelings are complex: when you are a Macao lion, are you supposed to accept your fate, quietly, or even brave the wind and rain to deliver meals and survive? Because Macao doesn't need a lion, unless you are that golden lion, motionless, for people to take pictures of.
Does Leo the Lion have dreams? For a long time, Leo was a lion unable to have dreams. He might have suffered from various pains of being unable to realize himself. Leo delivers takeaways, seemingly free in his actions (the scenery in the picture is beautiful), but during this process, he is constantly expended, unable to accumulate (but does this city care that it also needs to rely on Leo's personal accumulation to become robust?), until he meets a group of tuners…
Later, Leo the piano player performed his grand piano in many places. Before setting off, the piano workshop members brought out a set of specialized sheet music suitable for lions with short fingers to play… In every aspect of this city, by restoring the space where Leo (originally) could perform, he can act and realize his dreams in hospitals, casinos, plazas, art museums, and cemeteries, places that should have belonged to Leo. He can fill every corner of the city with music, creating different soundscapes for everyone.
"Leo the Lion's Dream Delivery" is both poignant and healing, and it can find various reflections or resonance in different Macao readers.