Glory in poetry...
(Baonghean.vn) - With 35 neat, gentle, and kind poems, reading "Vinh in me", ordinary readers can still think of this: Well, writing about Vinh does not necessarily require a "birth certificate" in Vinh.
These days, many places inside and outside the city are jubilantly celebrating the 60th anniversary (1963 - 2023) of Vinh's transformation from a town to a city and the 235th anniversary of Phuong Hoang Trung Do - Vinh (1788 - 2023). Also on this occasion, poet Vo Van Thoan released his 5th collection of poems, titled "That Vinh in Me" (Nghe An Publishing House, September 2023) with 35 poems.
I was a bit surprised, but after some research, I found out that he had a convincing reason. Although he was born in Nghi Phong, Nghi Loc, Nghe An, Vinh has become his and his family's second hometown; they have lived, worked, and bonded together, creating memories since the 70s of the last century, until today, and certainly will forever!
The collection of poems “Vinh do trong toi” was not written in one go, within a certain period of time, “for the sake of it”, or to participate in any contest. Recently, the Vinh Xua website launched a contest of many genres about Vinh, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of Vinh becoming a city, poet Vo Van Thoan submitted a series of 3 poems: “Ai che xanh doi”, “Dem Vinh”, “Ngay ay - nay”. Not raising the issue of winning an award or not, the author only participated in promoting the movement, aiming for good and honest things for the city where he lives. “A bright heart first, a bright road”, this is a verse in the poem “Golden words of the country” praising Uncle Ho. Hopefully, the poet, like many other citizens in Vinh, has been and is trying hard to have a “bright heart”, “a bright road” like that!
In the previous 4 poetry collections, published in 2009, 2013, 2019, 2020, Vo Van Thoan had a collection of poems about Vinh in each collection. There were nearly a hundred poems in total. Thanks to that, when he had the idea of collecting and publishing a separate collection about the city, he had an advantage, quickly completed the manuscript, the quality of the poems was "even", some poems and sentences were quite good. What is more important is that the book clearly reflects the landscape, atmosphere, customs, personality of the people and the land, the sacred air of the mountains and rivers, and the flowers and grass here. That is, it is difficult to confuse with other cities in the Central region.
In the poem "Very Glorious", there are many details that are only found here:“A bowl of eel porridge, a gift from Nghe An/ Nghi Phu country wine, Vinh oranges, the beauty of Hoan Chau is still preserved/ Very Vinh, not just mine”.
The song "Dang Vinh" is a synthesis of many lines:“There is a Vinh figure that is hard to forget/ The Vi Dam folk song is forever familiar/ Who is singing in the afternoon at Ben Thuy, feeling nostalgic/ Salt and ginger are salty, making the meaning last forever”.
In the early morning, hearing the call "Ai che xanh doi", how can one not be moved and excited:"Who wants green tea/ Just a few thousand dong/ But the sweet and bitter aroma of life". Sometimes, if we exaggerate a little bit about something we love, it's easier to sympathize, like when the poet looked at "The moon on Quyet mountain":“Nowhere/ On this earth/ Is the moon so close to Quyet Mountain/ The moon is also close/ The sea is so deep/ And so incredibly blue”.
Living in the same block, people from many places come together, helping each other in times of need, and then become "Neighbors":"Not from the same homeland/ If we are distant relatives, we rely on our neighbors". Lam River and Quyet Mountain have long been the enduring and beautiful symbols of Vinh City. If you look at them for a long time, you can easily get bored. Vo Van Thoan is different:“Lam River has gone through storms, floods/ But tonight it is like an unmarried girl/ Quyet Mountain has stood tall for thousands of years/ Spring comes and lets the bells ring…”.
Vinh Street has a new feature, proudly having an old flower village in the suburbs. Once the poet came to "Visit Nghi Lien flower village":“Many years ago, the fields of potatoes and rice were full of flowers/ This year, the whole commune is full of fresh flowers/ People escape poverty and move forward not just thanks to rice/ Sending love, flowers find friends with people”.
Carrying a sincere and lasting love for Vinh, Vo Van Thoan can easily see and compare the Red City of Uncle Ho's hometown "Then - now" with many changes, but the core is still the people:“The city of tireless walkers/ Each rosy morning lights up dreams of love”… And so on, the collection of poems takes readers through many changes in people and history; many emotional levels, thoughts about the hometown city, accumulated in a writer who is 76 years old.
With 35 neat, gentle, and kind poems, reading “Vinh in me”, ordinary readers can still think of this: Well, writing about Vinh does not necessarily require a “birth certificate” in Vinh. Born and raised in the Nghi Loc countryside, once full of sweet potatoes and cassava all year round, when he reached adulthood, and then started a career in the Transport industry since 1965, the poet “integrated” into Vinh, and has been with Vinh for more than 40 years. How many relationships, friends, jobs, and excitement and exploration have made Vo Van Thoan’s poetic soul attached to and indebted to the land and people of this place. There are also many writers who write poems from Vinh, living their whole lives in Vinh, but their feelings and souls are somewhere else, far away, so it is still difficult for them to write, and write, a whole collection of poems like that?
