Winter is approaching, which also means Hue is in its cold, rainy season. Storms and floods are still ahead, but every dry day is a blessing. For me, a rainy day encapsulates an entire rainy season. Perhaps it should begin with a rainy day when I was sixteen, a time long past.

In Hue during the winter, the sky is always gray, even when it's not raining, it's gloomy and overcast. Some days, the fog is so thick that the streets are silent, only the early-rising vendors are busy opening their shops, and the fires in the noodle stalls along the roadside bring a strange warmth to the streets. On some days, crossing the Truong Tien Bridge in the hazy white mist, the silver-painted iron railings give the feeling of being on a bridge, or perhaps you're walking through a sea of ​​clouds. Back then, the two rows of trees on Le Loi Street had canopies high above that seemed to touch, forming a green arch, but upon closer inspection, the canopies didn't actually touch. The further you went, the wider the road seemed, as if by magic. Above, in Hue's winter, the clouds were so low and close.

On cold days in Hue, my friends and I warmed each other with conversations on the way to school; sometimes it was the warmth of sweet potatoes or cassava wrapped in banana leaves; other times, in the afternoon, a friend would run through the rain to lend us a good storybook. We would often pass around worn-out books, reading them all night, and then the next morning we would talk about the book together on our way to school.

Hue's winter also has its days of golden sunshine. The sun dries the dampness, illuminates everything, and is as beautiful as our youth. The rainy season in this place evokes so much nostalgia, isn't that what you meant? So when we said goodbye and hung up, you said: "I love Hue in winter, I love the rainy seasons and floods, I love the people of Hue who live calmly, diligently, persistently, patiently, and understand the ways of heaven and earth, never uttering a word of complaint against nature. People who live like that find life so light!"

That's why we cherish those times so much. We remember cycling through the drizzling rain, passing by the Imperial Citadel, along the road lined with fallen yellow tamarind leaves, and by the Dam Da area where the cool breeze caressed our cheeks, soaked our hair, and seeped into our thin woolen sweaters. We remember the arrival of winter, when the mothers in Hue checked their rice jars, dried sweet potato jars, dried cassava, and fish sauce and shrimp paste, preparing for the cold winter days. We remember one winter when the biting cold winds swept through the streets, and you gave a warm woolen sweater to a classmate. Your mother knew about it but said nothing, because she was also giving away her children's clothes to the young patients where she worked...

This winter in Hue, I believe, will pass like all the winters before. Then the trees, fruits, and flowers will bloom to welcome the new spring. This recovery will help dry the tears, soothe the anxious gazes of sadness, loss, suffering, and the hardships of the rainy season and floods in this land. Life continues like this, thanks to both human effort and the miracle of nature. I look at the calendar announcing the arrival of winter, see the warm fire of yesteryear, and the sparkling eyes of my friend—dark, mischievous, clear, and warm—and my heart warms again. That is enough for one winter day, one winter season, and many more winters to come in my hometown of Hue.

Xuan An

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/mot-ngay-cho-ca-mua-dong-160146.html