Love letters that remain forever green.

(Baonghean)"Still together and full of love after nearly 70 years since exchanging those first letters, they still have so much to teach new generations about struggle and eternal love."

In May of this year, I was fortunate enough to learn about the launch of the second edition and first English version of the book "Memories of Love" (a collection of 250 out of 500 love letters written between 1950 and 1960) by the writer couple I've admired since childhood: writer Vu Tu Nam and writer-journalist Thanh Huong.

Only now do I know that the female writer Thanh Huong is from Nghe An province, the daughter of a famous scholar - Dr. Nguyen Huy Nhu (also known as Mr. Nhu), from Van Loc village, Thuong Xa commune, Hung Nguyen district, now Nghi Tan ward, Cua Lo town.

Writer Thanh Huong and her husband, writer Vu Tu Nam, exchanged rings at the launch ceremony of the English version of their book "Memories of Love".

The daughter of scholar Nhu inherited from her father a talent for literature and poetry, as well as courage and integrity. (The scholar once wrote a pair of couplets, still remembered by many, praising the scenery of Cua Lo, his hometown.)"Take a stroll and see, behold the Luo River, there the Yu Mountain, where is there more joy than in our old homeland? Holding hands, let me remind you, the orchid grower, the cinnamon tree grower, remember the roots of our ancestors."And it was that very personality and talent that captivated the gifted young man from the North from the very first glance.

The writer Vu Tu Nam once recalled their first meeting, noting that "the girl from Nghe An immediately left a deep impression" on him. In late 1948, when both were only eighteen or twenty years old, he was a soldier working at the "Chien Sy" (Soldier) newspaper in Military Region IV. One day, he heard a young woman (working in women's affairs) giving a speech to encourage the soldiers to enthusiastically go to battle against the enemy.

Her persuasive, warm voice, coupled with her round face, bright eyes, and soft hair cascading down her shoulders, stirred his heart. As his unit gradually moved north, he didn't know much about her, but his heart was already filled with longing and affection. He thought, if fate allowed, perhaps one day he would meet her again...

And indeed, fate had arranged for them to come together in a very special way. The writer Thanh Huong recounted that during those years, she was assigned by the organization to write letters of encouragement to the soldiers. She wrote letters of encouragement to the soldiers in his battalion, and she received a reply from him, on behalf of the soldiers in his unit. When writer Vu Tu Nam's unit returned to Military Region IV, upon meeting the girl who signed her name, Phuong Thuy, under each letter, he was astonished to realize that she was the girl who had captivated him from the first glance...

Later, both were transferred to Viet Bac for work. Like many young people at that time, writer Thanh Huong, with a heart burning with ideals and love for the revolution, immersed herself in the arduous and sacrificial war. She participated in the Border, Hoa Binh, and Upper Laos campaigns in various roles, sometimes working in logistics, other times as a political commissar in the medical corps.

During these years, she also began writing short stories, which she compiled into a book titled "Female Civilian Workers." Life, labor, and struggle, with all their intensity, resonated deeply within her, and she recreated it once again in her writings. These months also marked a significant milestone in her love story with the writer Vu Tu Nam.

They only met occasionally during military campaigns, only to part ways hastily afterward. Their friendship blossomed into love through letters, and after his long illness in late 1953, they married in 1954. The simple wedding ceremony, held at the Army Propaganda Department, lacked the traditional ring exchange. It wasn't until over 64 years later (April 2017), at the launch of a book commemorating their lives and love story, that they tearfully exchanged rings given to them by their children.

At over 80 years old, writer and journalist Thanh Huong no longer has the health to remember everything about her life, but only the memories of her love for writer Vu Tu Nam, and memories of her children... remain vividly etched in her memory.

She recounted that during those months, even after getting married, they were often separated. They only communicated regularly through letters. Over 500 letters, tucked at the bottom of their backpacks, accompanied them on their journeys during the resistance war. Over time, when they finally built a home, the letters filled a large leather suitcase. The letters, with their faded handwriting and yellowed pages, became their most precious possessions.

In their letters, they not only shared their longing for each other, expressed their love, exchanged vows and promises, and shared their trust, but also helped each other overcome difficulties, complete tasks, recount everyday stories, talk about their lives, their mutual friends, the growth of their children, and even shared their new creative works. It could be said that writer Vu Tu Nam was Thanh Huong's first discerning reader, and vice versa...

The lives, careers, and love stories of writers Thanh Huong and Vu Tu Nam are admired by many. They were not only talented writers but also achieved success in their professional lives. Vu Tu Nam later became the General Secretary of the Vietnam Writers Association, while Thanh Huong became the Editor-in-Chief of the Vietnam Women's Newspaper.

From the small house where they stayed at writer Thanh Huong's office when they left Viet Bac for the capital, to the nearly 30-square-meter room they rented on the second floor of a villa on Nguyen Thai Hoc Street (Hanoi), they lived and nurtured their love along with their children. Later, when the American invaders escalated their bombing of North Vietnam, that small family had to evacuate and part ways again… Their letters continued to extend their love.

The book "Memories of Love".

For writer Vu Tu Nam, his love and appreciation for his wife remain unchanged, even stronger than in the beginning when he was "moved by the voice, face, and shoulders of the girl from Nghe An." He says that she has accompanied him throughout his life with all her love, devotion, and sacrifice. She is his wife, but also his friend and soulmate.

She was diligent, caring, and devoted to the family, and she also helped him dispel his worries and anxieties with gentle, humorous stories… She said that now they “have so much in common: not only a house, property, and letters, but most precious of all, their children and grandchildren, and the joys and worries they share.”

Speaking about the book "Memories of Love," a collection of selected letters the two exchanged, writer Thanh Huong shared that she and her husband were very hesitant to publish anything private. However, they received encouragement from many people, especially American writer Lady Borton, who is currently the director of the Quaker Organization in Hanoi.

During a visit to the writer couple Thanh Huong and her husband, the American writer was deeply surprised by their love expressed through 500 letters. Lady Borton observed, "This is history, true history, the kind of history I cherish—true stories of people, full of everyday events recounted honestly, unlike anything found in journalistic or student literature." Many others share the same observation, noting that these letters, though personal, become "collective" as they carry the spirit of a generation's history.

According to Michael Arnold, the editor of the English translation of "Memories of Love," "Vu Tu Nam and Thanh Huong lived through important and fascinating periods of history. Still together and full of love after nearly 70 years since exchanging their first letters, they still have much to teach new generations about the nature of war, struggle, and eternal love."

Now, every day, writer Thanh Huong quietly finds joy in caring for writer Vu Tu Nam, in her affectionate handshakes, and in the stories they share about their youthful days filled with hardship and excitement…

TV