Ten-year-old Xuanxuan had one wish: to visit Shanghai Disney Resort and sing the famous “Ballad of Mulan” before meeting none other than Mulan herself. An ancient folk song that nearly every child in China learns, it represents power and bravery in Chinese culture as it tells the story of Mulan.
Xuanxuan has been fighting a brainstem glioma, a cancerous tumor, and she has been enchanted by Mulan, from the Walt Disney Animation Studios film, since the moment she saw videos of the courageous warrior riding a majestic warhorse during Mickey’s Storybook Express parade at Shanghai Disneyland. The Disney Princess looked so brave and beautiful, igniting Xuanxuan’s wish to one day meet her hero in person.
“The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all.”
On June 22, her wish came true! The excited wish child and her family arrived at the Royal Banquet Hall in the Enchanted Storybook Castle. Joining them were Shanghai Ambassador, Wendy Feng and three VoluntEARS from the Shanghai Disney Resort Calligraphy Club, who are experts in Chinese calligraphy.
Xuanxuan was presented with beautiful calligraphy artwork of the “Ballad of Mulan” as a gift from the VoluntEARS and even got to try her hand at Chinese calligraphy in a special lesson – an experience she deemed one of her favorite parts of the whole wish. She then got to sing the song and meet her favorite character, Mulan.
Xuanxuan proudly gave Mulan her piece of art, elegantly displayed on a fan. And the magic didn’t stop there! She then boarded Mickey’s Storybook Express to see Mulan in full armor, enjoyed the new The Adventure of Rhythm show and watched Mulan’s epic story unfold.
The day ended with the wish child and her family exploring the park, creating even more magical memories together.
After this special wish granting experience, Xuanxuan’s mom shared, “We had a great time, filled with happiness. We would love to thank all the volunteers sincerely. Xuanxuan and I felt so surprisingly happy and excited from the attention we were getting.” Xuanxuan expressed sincere gratitude for the optimistic atmosphere she enjoyed during her once-in-a-lifetime wish.
Making wishes come true is at the core of everything we do at Disney. We’ve worked alongside our friends at Make-A-Wish for more than 40 years to grant more than 155,000 Disney Wishes together globally… including this one. To learn more, visit worldwish.org/disney.
In the warrior spirit of Mulan, we hope Xuanxuan embodies bravery throughout her journey and carries this newfound courage with her wherever she goes. Stay tuned as we continue to celebrate World Princess Week and share stories from around the world you won’t want to miss!