Wooden fish: How long will you have to eat it?

(Baonghean)Back in school, I was incredibly lazy, always procrastinating until the last minute, but luckily I was quick-witted and never once choked on water. My father would often sigh and say to me, "My dear son, do you know that when I was your age, I had to sit under a lamppost to study? I didn't have the luxury of living like you do now. With your laziness, you wouldn't even have wooden fish to eat!" Of course, I had never eaten wooden fish before, so I was very surprised.

Later, I learned the story behind the wooden fish of the students from Nghe An. It's funny how the story of the wooden fish was originally made to tease poor, awkward students studying in the capital. Yet, for some reason, the people of Nghe An didn't take it seriously; instead, they embraced it as a "tradition," a characteristic of theirs, and even took pride in it! "Your parents are poor, so you're poor; that's your fate. Poverty isn't a crime, so why be ashamed of being poor? It would be shameful if you were poor because of laziness. But if you become rich through inhumane and unjust acts, living a life of ease and luxury, you're still no match for that student who ate the wooden fish to worship Confucius!"

It's no coincidence that when thinking of the people of Nghe An, one immediately thinks of the wooden fish. The image of the wooden fish was chosen for two reasons: firstly, when talking about the people of Nghe An, one thinks of "cutting large pieces and cooking with salty sauce," because the salty sauce helps save food and allows it to be preserved longer – referring to the thrifty, economical, and foresightful nature of people from this region prone to natural disasters. The fish also evokes the image of the carp leaping over the dragon gate to transform into a dragon, symbolizing the desire of students in Nghe An to rise above poverty through education and knowledge. Therefore, the story of the wooden fish, originally a satirical and humorous image, has become a "sacred symbol" of the people of Nghe An in general and their students in particular.

Even now, although I don't have to borrow streetlights to study like my father, wherever I go, if I speak with my distinctive accent, people exclaim, "Ah, a 'wooden fish' person!" However, instead of implying "wooden fish people are poor," people understand it more to mean "wooden fish people are good students." Could it be that "wooden fish" is a special food that's good for the intellect? It's a joke, but it's true, because it's often in difficult circumstances that people find the motivation to strive for success. But this gives rise to a paradox: Why are "wooden fish" people so good students yet still have to eat wooden fish?

Actually, people who eat "wooden fish" only eat it in Nghe An province. Once they've gone out and achieved success, they don't need to eat it anymore, do they? And for those people, the essence of Nghe An, the essence of "wooden fish," naturally fades away, replaced by Australian beef, French wine, Japanese salmon, and so on and so forth. Those who grew up eating "wooden fish" don't return, so this land remains poor, and new generations remain loyal to "wooden fish." Therefore, people from Nghe An are known for their talent, but only in foreign lands. I rested my chin on my hand, looking at the plate of fish my mother braised in a very salty sauce, and thought: How much longer will our people have to eat "wooden fish"?

Hai Trieu