Looking at the neon signs of all the bars from the balcony of the one she works in, Julia says: “When the lights over the bar street come on, that is my sunrise. I can forget all the bad stuff in my life.”
Cheung is half-impressed, half-skeptical: “You can find joy so easily. You can be so…simple.”
And then, Julia, a lowly singer in one of the bar streets many bars, dropped into some random place in the three-million-people urban jungle that is Hong Kong in the 1960s, casually reveals the secret of life: “Happiness should be simple. If I can do the things I enjoy every day, I am very happy.”
As long as she can sing and dance, Julia is happy. There is no need for more. “Once you find the place where you belong, you don’t want to leave, no matter what happens.” For Julia, the Gold Bar is her home.
Yes, some customers are difficult. Yes, not everything is perfect. But every day, she gets to sing. To dance. To play. And that is enough.
When life feels complicated, it’s only because we make it so. Find your singing. Find your home. And then enjoy simple happiness.