Collection of essays by poet Nguyen Linh Khieu

Golden phoenix

I sat alone on the second floor of a rustic coffee shop. The small, deserted shop on a winding street had a name that couldn’t be more rustic than Ve Ho.

I don’t know why people planted yellow royal poinciana trees on that small road by the water’s edge. In early summer, the yellow royal poinciana trees are so bright and beautiful. Although the yellow royal poinciana flowers bloom so passionately, their color is always vague and desolate.

In front of him was a small table that looked exactly like a rough wooden cutting board, made from the trunk of a large piece of wood. The long wooden chair looked like a stylish double student chair.

West Lake, a quiet sunset, the water reflects vaguely. The water ripples in the daylight. I ordered a cup of coffee and a pack of cigarettes. Those are things I almost never use.

Suddenly I remembered one morning a friend came back from far away. He asked me out for coffee and wanted to give me a package of dates. We sat in this deserted cafe.

A Facebook friend and this is the first time we met. Facebook is magical. It makes two people who have never met before feel like they have been close friends in a previous life.

After hours of talking about all sorts of things, I can only remember one thing. You said everyone said you had beautiful and impressive lips. I said your dove eyes were the most beautiful.

Deep eyes are always filled with a desolate sadness. I wonder if such sad eyes can be beautiful.

Nha Trang

Every afternoon I go to the stone embankment. I sit alone and watch the soft green seaweeds undulating and floating with the waves. At that time, two questions always come to my mind.

Do the waves have to crash against the shore like this? Does the seaweed have to be so soft and green? The questions echoed but remained unanswered.

When the bell of the Stone Church rang, I slowly returned to the hotel.

Rose

As soon as you stepped out onto the balcony, you hurriedly chased something away. I asked what was wrong. You told me to come out. I stepped out. You told me to look at how beautiful the roses were this morning. The petals were bright red. The fragrance was so strong. But those damn butterflies and bees ruined them all.

That's right. They compete to suck the nectar, so the beautiful roses have petals that are crooked and fall off. This is no longer a noble rose.

Seeing me smile, you asked me why I was smiling. I said roses bloom and spread their fragrance to attract bees and butterflies. Flowers are beautiful and fragrant because of bees and butterflies, not because of me. You asked for real. I said bees and butterflies help the flowers pollinate and bear fruit, preserving the rose breed. I am just a follower of bees and butterflies.

You argue that I plant trees to see beautiful flowers. I say that is my purpose. The tree blooms beautifully for its own sake.

Barringtonia acutangula

One day my grandfather called me. He asked if there was still room on the terrace for some potted plants. I thought my father-in-law wanted to buy plants as gifts, so I hesitated. Because the plants he liked were all very expensive. Seeing that, he said right away. He meant to move some large potted plants down to my house for me to take care of.

He was a man who loved bonsai all his life. His villa displayed many rare and ancient bonsai trees. Each tree was stunningly beautiful. Each tree was very expensive. Every day he spent a lot of time meticulously pruning and shaping the trees. Every tree he planted was lush and had a unique shape. Now that he was old and seriously ill, he did not have the strength to take care of the trees. He could not bear to give his precious trees to the world.

Then a small truck carrying the plants arrived at his house. Grandfather carefully escorted them. He went up to the terrace to look at the meaning and choose the place to put each potted plant. Those were the most precious plants in his villa.

Many years later, all the potted plants he gave were green and healthy. In particular, the ancient Barringtonia acutangula tree bloomed twice a year. The flowers were very abundant. The color was bright red and the fragrance was strong.

After he passed away, the potted plants he gave me, which I took good care of, remained green and flourishing as usual. However, the Barringtonia acutangula tree, since the day he passed away, has not bloomed a single flower.

Once I visited a garden like that. Seeing that the owner was knowledgeable about trees, I took the opportunity to talk about the Barringtonia acutangula tree. The garden owner laughed and said that on the day the old man passed away, I should have tied a piece of black cloth around each tree so that they could mourn him. If I had missed it, that old Barringtonia acutangula tree would never bloom again.

Class reunion

I was the head of the class liaison committee for many years. When I retired, I wanted to return to my hometown so I resigned. Looking back at the first class reunions, everyone was very excited. Everyone had the feeling that the beautiful student days were coming back, as happy as Tet. Many trips were organized far away. Many all-night drinking parties. Many old feelings resurfaced.

The new head of the committee has a new way of doing things. Previously, only classmates would attend the meetings. Now, with the change, both husband and wife are invited to join. The first meeting was also very exciting and fun, even though the number of class members had decreased by a fraction. The second meeting had nearly half the number of class members and the atmosphere was somewhat awkward. The third meeting had more than half the number of members. The class meeting turned into a family group meeting.

I attended all the meetings. One night, I was drinking. My friend sitting next to me asked: Why are you all so busy that you don't go? I said: You're old, your health isn't good anymore. You're retired, so you don't have much money anymore. There were many other reasons too. My friend said: Why are you so full and happy? I said: Ah, going to a class reunion is like the people in the mountains going to a love market. If you bring your husband and wife along, the market will be over. My friend stood up and laughed.

Source: https://daidoanket.vn/chum-tan-van-cua-nha-tho-nguyen-linh-khieu-10291133.html