Writer Kim Lan's nightly actions make his relatives choke up

Among the articles written about writer Kim Lan, people sometimes see Kim Lan mention his wife - Mrs. Nguyen Thi Tam (born 1926 - 2001).

In which, there are 2 times writer Kim Lan mentioned his wife that made people feel impressed. That was the old lady holding the cart of rice bran, the old man pushing it from behind (from which the "thought" to write the work "The Picked-up Wife" was born), and "Most of the children resemble their mother, beautiful thanks to their mother".

Few people know that, in married life, writer Kim Lan and his partner are extremely affectionate people.

Painter Nguyen Thi Hien (born in 1946, eldest daughter of writer Kim Lan) said that her mother was the younger sister of cameraman, People's Artist Nguyen Dang Bay.

In her marriage with writer Kim Lan, Mrs. Tam was the one who took care of the family's life and managed the finances to support the whole family.

“When life was difficult, my mother took on military supplies: patching and repairing clothes and blankets, buying rice for the soldiers, and using bran to feed pigs. Later, when she returned to the capital, she took on crocheting scarves, knitting wool, and weaving net bags, and worked with her children,” said Ms. Hien.

Despite all the hardships and worries, Mrs. Tam is very attentive to her husband and hospitable.

“Since I was little, I witnessed Mr. Nguyen Huy Tuong, Nguyen Hong, To Hoai, Nguyen Tuan… often coming to visit Mr. Kim Lan’s house. When they came, my mother started cooking so that my teacher and the others could enjoy a meal while talking about literature and reading to each other their newly written works…

“These conversations could last from 9am to 3am the next morning. The laughter would still echo throughout the neighborhood and my mother never complained,” the artist said.

It was also from these friends that artist Nguyen Thi Hien said she learned more about the life and love of her parents. That was the story of writer Kim Lan taking his wife to give birth.

“Every time writer Nguyen Hong came to the house and saw me, Uncle Nguyen Hong burst out laughing and told the story of how he and my father took my mother to give birth to me.

That time, when my mother was about to give birth, my father and Uncle Nguyen Hong took her through Dau Market, Dinh Bang (Tu Son, Bac Ninh) to the maternity hospital. But the three of them went back and forth several times, but I still did not come out.

The women and girls selling goods at the market saw that scene and kept covering their mouths to laugh, making my teacher blush. Afterwards, the people of Dau market said: "The child in this belly is very stubborn. The husband had to climb over the roof three times and wade through the pond before the wife could give birth."

Back home, Uncle Nguyen Hong kept peeping to see if my teacher was doing as the villagers told him. One day, he discovered that when no one was around, my teacher had climbed up to the roof, ran up and down exactly three times. Then, he rolled up his pants and waded across the pond. While doing these things, he kept looking around to avoid being seen.

The next day, my mother gave birth to me…”.

This story is far away in the past. However, because she heard the writer Nguyen Hong tell it many times, its content was deeply imprinted in her memory and became a memorable memory for her whenever she thought of her father.

Remembering her father’s habit, painter Nguyen Thi Hien also said: “When my teacher went to work, he gave all the money he earned to his mother. I remember one time when my family was evacuated, my teacher cycled from Hanoi to Yen The, Bac Giang to give his salary to my mother. When he had to cross the ferry to return to Hanoi, he discovered that he had no money in his pocket to pay the ferry fare. So he had to go back to see his mother…”.

Continuing to talk about her parents’ marriage, the female artist said: “My teacher and my mother sometimes argued, but they were very affectionate. Wherever writer Kim Lan went, he held his wife’s hand. Even when sitting next to each other, my teacher had to hold my mother’s hand or vice versa.”

The artist also said that in her family, all members love reading. Whenever there is a new book, they are engrossed in reading, no one pays attention to cooking. Her parents are even more special.

“I remember when I was little, before going to bed, my father always had the habit of reading books to his wife. He read all kinds of books. I lay next to him, pretending to be asleep so I could listen with him. However, when he read ghost stories, I was scared and had to roll between my father and mother to lie down,” Ms. Hien recalled.

Later, when her mother passed away, writer Kim Lan's longing for his wife made her realize even more that the love her parents had for each other was immeasurable.

“My teacher told me that when my mother was alive, he loved her too, but when she passed away, he loved her even more.

After my mother passed away, my father would arrange yellow chrysanthemums every day, the flowers they both loved. At night, when the children were asleep, he would light the oil lamp, look at his wife's photo, and tell my mother stories about the day, stories from his memories.

We know but let him be so he can live with the feeling that his partner is still by his side," Ms. Hien said emotionally when recalling the past.