Stories of Dumpling Festival, Movie and Faithful Lives

This year on 19 June 2026 (Lunar 5 May), I noticed that the number of Zongzi Festival greeting cards shared in WhatsApp chat groups increased significantly compared with previous years. One former classmate even commented while sharing one of such greeting cards, “We Sabahan Chinese still remember our roots and remain very much Chinese, as we continue to observe our traditional customs.”

For me, when my parents were still alive, it was customary for our family to gather for a reunion dinner at their home whenever the Duan Wu Festival or Dumpling Festival arrived. That tradition ceased after they passed away. For our generation, maintaining such practices has become increasingly difficult, especially as many of our children have moved abroad and settled in different countries.

At times, I wonder how appropriate it is to exchange greeting cards carrying messages such as “Happy Dragon Boat Festival” or “Happy Zongzi Festival,” considering the historical origins of this observance. The original purpose of making and throwing rice dumplings into the Miluo River (汨罗江) was to prevent the body of the patriotic poet-statesman Qu Yuan (屈原) from being eaten by fish. It is, at its core, a gesture rooted in mourning and remembrance. 

According to tradition, Qu Yuan took his own life by jumping into the river after failing to persuade the king of Chu to adopt his counsel. His political failure and exile are believed to have contributed to the eventual decline of the Chu kingdom.

I remember that during the 1950s and 1960s, Chinese primary school textbooks placed great emphasis on teaching about historical heroes such as Qu Yuan and Yue Fei (岳飞). According to traditional accounts, Yue Fei, born in 1103, was physically strong, highly disciplined, and trained in both martial arts and classical scholarship. One famous story recorded in textbooks is that his mother tattooed four characters on his back - “精忠报国,” meaning “serve the country with utmost loyalty.”

Yue Fei was a celebrated general of the Song dynasty who led his forces in resisting the invading Jin armies from the north. Despite his loyalty and military achievements, he was betrayed by the corrupt official Qin Hui and was unjustly executed.

For his treachery, Qin Hui’s legacy has become synonymous with shame and humiliation. This is vividly symbolized by the kneeling iron statues of Qin Hui and his wife placed before Yue Fei’s tomb in Hangzhou. I still remember our trip to Hangzhou, China in September 2014. At Yue Fei’s tomb, we witnessed tourists slapping or striking these statues as they paid their respects to Yue Fei. It remains one of the most powerful examples of public condemnation of wrongdoing that I have ever witnessed - where, even centuries after death, a person continues to be remembered with enduring disgrace.

Yet, such powerful reminders of corruption and betrayal do not seem sufficient to deter others from repeating the same mistakes. As I have pointed out before, there is no shortage of corrupt leaders and individuals, not only in China but throughout the world even today.

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We also spent two hours that afternoon watching the highly acclaimed Chinese movie "Dear You" (给阿嬷的情书). This low-budget film, produced in China in the Teochew dialect with a production cost of only ¥14 million RMB (approximately RM9.0 million), has achieved extraordinary success. Since its release in April 2026, it has grossed ¥1.8 billion RMB (around RM1.12 billion) as of 19 June 2026 - an astonishing achievement for a regional, dialect-based family drama.

The film has resonated deeply with Chinese audiences around China and many southeast Asian countries because its story reflects a shared collective memory shaped by migration, separation, and family sacrifice. For many overseas Chinese families, its themes feel intensely personal. The experiences portrayed in the film mirror the journeys of countless Chinese migrants whose forefathers left China in search of better opportunities abroad, often enduring hardship, loneliness, and long periods of separation from their loved ones.

For my wife, whose maternal ancestors migrated from Chaoshan (潮汕) and whose grandfather came from Dongshan (东山), Fujian, to Malaya in the early 1900s, this shared history gave the film an even deeper emotional resonance. As she watched, the story became more than just a narrative on screen - it reflected the lived experiences of her own family.

For me, the film stirred powerful memories of both my paternal grandfather and maternal grandfather, who migrated from Guangdong to North Borneo in the early 1900s. Their journeys, struggles, and sacrifices echoed profoundly throughout the film, bringing to mind the hardships they endured and the resilience that shaped the generations that followed.

What makes the film especially powerful is its emotional authenticity. It captures the enduring bonds between generations, the sacrifices made in silence, and the emotional weight carried through letters, memories, and unspoken love. In many ways, Dear You is more than just a movie - it is a heartfelt tribute to the history, resilience, and emotional legacy of the Chinese diaspora.

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A day earlier, I had the privilege of sharing with the Golden Joy Senior Citizen Fellowship Group during the pre-Father’s Day celebration. As most of the audience were seniors who have now reached the cherished stage of being grandparents, the emphasis of my sharing was on affirming that although many of them may see their lives as simple and ordinary, they have in fact achieved something extraordinary. Through years of perseverance, sacrifice, love, and faithful commitment to their families and communities, they have built legacies that continue to shape future generations. Their lives stand as a powerful reminder that greatness is often found not in fame or recognition, but in quiet faithfulness and enduring impact.