Warmth from green sedge

"The war zone is filled with joy, warming the hearts of my people."

The sound of pounding the yam is as rhythmic as the sound of my heart"...

The above lyrics in the famous song “Green Green Canal” composed by the late musician Ngo Huynh (1931 – 1993) in 1949, recall the Duong Van Duong canal dug in the early 20th century, flowing through Long An , in which it mentions the sedge plant planted near the canal, which is actually a type of grass about 2m high, with a round, tube-shaped stem like a chopstick and brown flowers at the top. Many tourists wonder what “gía bang” is? Bringing that question to My Hanh Bac commune, Duc Hoa district, Long An province, we had an interesting experience in this village with a traditional craft associated with the sedge plant. Elderly people in My Hanh Bac said that in the past, after harvesting the sedge, people in the South used a pestle to pound it and dry it to weave mattresses (also known as sedge hats) for their family's use. During the resistance war, sedge mattresses were used for soldiers to sleep in the war zone. The elders learned the craft of weaving palm cushions from their parents, a craft passed down from generation to generation and preserved to this day, as evidenced by the folk songs that still retain their value:

"White skin because of my mother"

Dark skin because of wading and picking octopus

Green flowers and green leaves

You go plant rice while I pull out the weeds.

(swamp - flooded swamp)...

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