"Joining hands in a great circle"
(Baonghean) - I love Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City. It's a natural feeling that blossomed one summer afternoon when I saw Saigon drenched in rain and then drying up instantly. Naturally, I find everything here lovely. And I don't understand why?
Perhaps I love Ben Thanh Market, where even when haggling five or ten times the asking price, the vendors still smile and speak in a pleasant, sweet, and incredibly engaging way. Or maybe I love the casual eateries where Saigonese people linger for hours, offering cheap drinks but with undeniably delicious flavors. Or perhaps I love Saigon's iced milk coffee, or "bac xiu" as it's called locally – probably a word of Chinese origin, just like many people, cultures, and dishes in Saigon have Chinese roots. One thing is certain: I'm not the only one who loves Saigon. Many people I know are also captivated by this vibrant city, with its youthful modernity, yet also its rustic and down-to-earth charm. I suddenly wonder, what would Saigon be like without it?
Without Saigon, would the South be without it? Where would the vast, distant rows of mangrove trees be for Trong Tan to sing his heartfelt songs? Where could I find the southern forests with the characters of Vo Tong and little An for Doan Gioi to write for my childhood to read with such delight? The eyes of Pleiku's Bien Ho Lake, full of life, I've searched my whole life but never found. The coffee I drink probably isn't as bitter and fragrant as the coffee from Buon Ma Thuot, its aroma having faded long ago. And little Bim wouldn't know what an elephant looks like, or what a communal house looks like, because where is Buon Don with its baby elephant? Who knows? My mother and grandmother would only know about the peach blossoms of Tet, but who would send a little golden sunshine on the apricot blossoms to the North...?
My beloved South, I dare not imagine a scene of division. I'm so used to the sound of the Reunification Express train whistles, traveling North and South; even a single station missing would make the journey feel so short. Years ago, my grandfather and my older brother carved through the Truong Son mountain range, using their blood and bones to build a road connecting the vital arteries of our nation. Now, my brother and I, one in the South and the other in the North, have the great road opened; nothing seems so far away. I look at North and South Korea, Ukraine and Crimea, and see how unfortunate it is that, sharing the same language and blood, stepping across a border has left us vastly different and separated. Only then do I realize how miraculous those two words, "Reunification," truly are!
Has true unity been achieved? Or does regional discrimination still exist? Some people, because of this, feel inferior about their local identity, unaware that the greatest commonality is that everyone is Vietnamese. It is these unique characteristics that expand, extend, and grow the common good, forming a large circle, connecting all of Vietnam. I only hope that this circle remains full of love and affection, and that there are no divisions between North and South, between forests and seas, lest it become distorted without anyone realizing it!
Hai Trieu(Email from Paris)