The honeysuckle flower

When the season arrives, the warm sunlight shimmers through the heart-shaped leaves, swaying the clusters of buds with their pointed shapes like tiny hexagons. Then, one day while sweeping the yard, I caught a faint scent, and realized the jasmine vine had bloomed. Indeed, the next morning, each pretty flower opened with a sweet, gentle lemon-yellow hue. The jasmine vine swayed like sparkling green spheres…

My father prepared a tall chair to pick the jasmine flowers. My job was to stand below, holding a basket, and catch each bunch he picked, putting them into the basket. My mind was already dreaming of dinner with the irresistibly delicious stir-fried jasmine flowers with garlic. Back then, my family was very poor. Jasmine flowers could only be stir-fried with garlic; we didn't have pork or beef to stir-fry with them like we do now. Or, if my father caught a bucket of freshwater crabs, we'd have a crab soup with jasmine flowers. Those meals were more lively than ever. In the crab soup, the jasmine flowers stood out with their lemon-yellow color, adding a touch of beauty to the soup on a cool, sunny day. The whole family gathered around the table, happily enjoying the simple dishes made from jasmine flowers.

Decades have passed so quickly. I left home, leaving behind the season of honeysuckle blossoms, carrying with me my own hopes and those of my family, to study and build a career in the city. Strangely, when I seek out these honeysuckle flowers, I find peace. The honeysuckle is no longer just a food item. It's like an embrace, a comforting embrace for a child far from home like me...

Source: https://baodienbienphu.com.vn/tin-tuc/van-hoa/209989/bong-hoa-thien-ly