When I was ten years old, I was fascinated by the beauty of the bougainvillea trellis in front of my friend's house and insisted that my father plant me an identical trellis. To pamper his little daughter, my father asked for two pieces of bougainvillea to plant. At that time, we did not have the conditions to build a dome house like today, so my father meticulously split bamboo to make a trellis and skillfully prune the plants to climb. Time passed quickly, the branches of the trees spread and covered the trellis, shading a cool space. Under the bougainvillea trellis, my father placed a bamboo bed. And that place is associated with so many memories of my childhood.
It can be said that no flower is as brilliant and has such a strong vitality all year round as bougainvillea. All four seasons are spring, summer, autumn and winter. On summer afternoons, lying under a bamboo bed and looking up, there is a trellis of fresh roses dotted with tiny white pistils. Each thin petal curls together, embracing the white pistils like small lanterns. The petals fall gently, creating a beautiful pink carpet. And so, even when the flower leaves the branch and returns to mother earth, it still retains its original, simple beauty.
On that bamboo bed, my father always kept a pot of green tea. Every time he came home from work in the fields, he would sit under the bougainvillea trellis to drink tea and smoke. Neighbors passing by would also stop by to sit under the flowers to rest. At times like that, my father would not forget to turn on the small radio to listen to the radio programs and just like that, the domestic and international news would be discussed enthusiastically and professionally by the farmers with muddy hands and feet.
I loved my father's small radio because it was my fairy world , the place that opened up to me many horizons of dreams. Every afternoon, I would lie on the bamboo bed, look up at the bougainvillea trellis and eagerly wait until 5:30 pm to hear the familiar announcement: "Cultural program for children". Thanks to my father's radio, I listened to so many stories, only when I grew up could I afford to buy them. My childhood grew up with "Blue Lotus" by Son Tung, "Fall Leaves in the Garden" by Ma Van Khang, "No Family" by Hector Malot, "Fierce Childhood" by Phung Quan...
It seems that the older we get and the more events and ups and downs we go through, the more nostalgic we become, about the peaceful memories of our childhood. It has been 4 years since I have heard my father's footsteps, the smell of cigarette smoke, the sound of his night cough, the familiar words every time I pushed the gate open and entered: "Are you home?". I waited for a miracle to happen. But no, the leaves have fallen, the flowers have fallen and my father has never returned. Only now do I believe that plants and trees also have souls, know sadness, know love. Such a brilliant and resilient flower also rustled, each one covering the road on the last day of seeing my father off...
During the days of despair and sadness, I sat absent-mindedly beside the bougainvillea trellis. I dreamed that I was a little girl of 10 years old, following my father every morning and every afternoon. I heard the radio playing at the end of the alley, the rustling sound of bougainvillea swaying in the wind, and my father's voice advising: You must learn to be strong like the bougainvillea, never surrender to fate, the more harsh the situation, the more beautiful the color, go through the four seasons with all the radiance and joy.
I understand, flowers bloom and then wither, today and tomorrow, everything still moves forward in a cycle. And my father is always with me, watching my every step no matter where I am. This season is sunny, windy, the flowers are at their most brilliant and in me, nostalgia is still stirring...
Hello love, season 4, theme "Father" officially launched from December 27, 2024 on four types of press and digital infrastructure of Dong Nai Newspaper and Radio and Television, promising to bring to the public the wonderful values of sacred and noble fatherly love.
Please send to Dong Nai Newspaper, Radio and Television your touching stories about Father by writing articles, writing feelings, poems, essays, video clips, songs (with recordings),... via email [email protected], Electronic Newspaper and Digital Content Department, Dong Nai Newspaper, Radio and Television, No. 81, Dong Khoi, Tam Hiep Ward, Dong Nai Province, phone number: 0909.132.761. The time to receive articles is from now until August 30, 2025.
Quality articles will be published, paid royalties, and rewarded at the end of the topic with 1 special prize and 10 excellent prizes.
Let's continue writing the story about Father with "Hello Love" season 4, so that stories about Father can spread and touch everyone's hearts!
Lam Khue
Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/van-hoa/chao-nhe-yeu-thuong/202507/lao-xao-noi-nho-ff90e5b/
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