A day feels like a lifetime.

Le Manh Binh's poetry is beautiful, and breathtakingly so. That's his inherent nature. Or, to put it another way: his poetry is full of inherent nature. Reading his poems, you realize that "memories, no matter how old, never grow old" is a true saying.

His poetry leads us back to the quiet moments of memory that still resonate somewhere, haunt somewhere, and linger somewhere, whether in Thien Cam, Sa Pa, the Gam River, or Luc Thuy Lake, whether the events occurred at the beginning of the 20th century or more recently. Space ("here") and time ("now") seem to change little and are often immutable in his poetry.

Few people can see the beauty and purity of "The Water Season" as clearly as he did: "The rice paddy river still runs along its old path / Two golden streaks winding through the green heart / A girl visiting the fields, holding a pole, walks in the middle / Imagines gliding a boat on a sky-blue silk cloth." Few people can see the stillness of life as beautifully and poetically as he did: "A wisp of smoke spreads over the thatched roof / Someone's laughter gently echoes in the tea garden / Shadows of people stretch along the cliff / Regardless of a thousand years of rain and sun" ("Silence"). That is his "seeing." But his "feeling" is much deeper through "Nostalgia": "The sweet taste from the milk of the sprouting rice / from the warm earth rises... / still lingering on the way home... / Intoxicated by the rustling of the plants..." . His love is an infatuation, an endless regret. A fleeting encounter in life also caused him to torment himself: "I still wonder / why, having returned to a foreign land / without a promise to come back / now so far away / If only you were still the same / I would also be the same as before" ("Foreign Land"). A date, a meeting, a heart-to-heart conversation with the one he loved also left a lasting impression: "I remember the rows of Botanical trees / casting golden shadows on the calm lake / we talked about so many things / when we returned, night had fallen" (" Hanoi and You"). A farewell also filled him with sorrow: "You left like the scent of the wind / drifting with the autumn / leaving behind waiting places / in the misty haze" ("Beautiful Woman of the War Zone")...

The sense of time and seasons in Le Manh Binh's poetry is also unique. For him, spring is a "season of restlessness" with "hesitations and shyness," summer is a season that calls us in with "burning passion," "autumn is a dry season / feeling a distant, bustling atmosphere," and winter is "a season of hearing falling leaves / a nostalgic echo," then "drifting along with the seasons of love." For him, time is a moment of emotion, of the sweet and bitter experiences that everyone must taste and feel: "People count the time falling drop by drop / the sound of the watchman's lute is sparse and quiet / what remains of the biting cold / what remains of silent, stirring emotions" ("Silent Waves").

In "The Cycle of Life," the line "A Day Like a Lifetime" is a profound poetic image, not easily captured. The phrase "A day like a lifetime" is concise, condensed, and full of meaning. Just five words, yet it carries a depth of philosophy and emotion. The poem evokes the idea that life is life itself, that each passing day is a "simplified version" of an entire lifetime. A day passes, and a lifetime seems to have just passed. From a Buddhist or Zen perspective, the line can also be understood as a reminder: "To live a day fully is to live a lifetime fully." Because life is impermanent, every moment could be the last. To live a day fully means to live consciously and mindfully, not giving in to waste, anger, or delusion. Depending on the context, the line can also evoke a sigh. For those who have experienced life, a day can feel as long as a lifetime.

Le Manh Binh's poetry is rich in emotion, possessing a natural and pure beauty. He doesn't rely on his profession or overuse technique, nor is he overly elaborate in his choice of words or sentence structure. He focuses on himself and his life when writing. He uses personal experience and sincerity as the strengths of his poetry and writes with passionate intensity. It's worth noting that to date, Le Manh Binh has published three poetry collections: "Human Fate," "Flying Clouds," and "Life Cycle," all published by the Vietnam Writers Association Publishing House, and this year he turned 86.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/mot-ngay-nhu-mot-doi-709750.html