The north wind season is coming

The return

I returned to the Tien River when the north wind season had just begun. Early in the morning, a thin mist covered the canal banks, smoke billowed from the roof. Mother Bay was lighting the fire, the red flame shimmering in the wind. She smiled gently and said: “The north wind came early this year, my child, this rice crop must have plenty of seeds, the melons outside the dike are about to bear fruit.” I sat by the straw stove, watching the smoke drift away. Outside, the coconut trees leaned their shadows, the wind rustled through the banana garden. In the early cold of the season, old memories seemed to return, those were the bustling pond-draining sessions, the smell of straw smoke was fragrant with the scent of new rice.

Linh fish follow the tide to the fields. Photo: THIEU PHUC

Around the 10th lunar month every year, the north wind carries the cold air from the North to the South, signaling the change of seasons. The north wind season is also the time to harvest floating rice, drain ponds, pound rice, and weddings. In the fields, perch and snakehead fish follow the receding water, all of them plump and plump with meat.

Amidst the wind and sun of the border, Chairman of the People's Committee of Vinh Xuong Commune Bui Thai Hoang shared: "Vinh Xuong has a special position in developing the border economy and maintaining national sovereignty. The government and people here are making efforts to turn the upstream border area into a dynamic development area, turning disadvantages into advantages to connect the Mekong Delta with Cambodia and the extended Mekong sub-region". In recent times, thanks to the joint efforts and consensus of the entire political system, Vinh Xuong is changing every day. Traffic infrastructure and production infrastructure are gradually being improved, people's lives have been significantly improved. The Party's will and the people's hearts are blending, making this border area a new growth pole of the province.

Leaving the commune Party Committee office, I followed the Tien River to visit Uncle Nam Hoanh. That afternoon, he invited me to visit the fields. The dirt road followed the canal bank, the grass was scratched and bent in the wind. The fields in front were flooded. The places inside the dyke for the third crop were in the maiden stage, the rice smelled sweet. Uncle Nam smiled gently: "In the past, when the north wind blew, everyone was busy draining the ponds to catch fish for Tet. It was a lot of fun then, there was a lot of mud but no one was afraid, laughter echoed throughout the village."

The song "Green betel leaves"

In the afternoon, Miss Bay Tiet sat by the riverbank, untangling her tangled hair and smiling: “Every afternoon when the north wind blows and I don’t sing, I miss my hometown so much, I sing to distract myself from life”. Then she softly raised her voice: “If we love each other, we split the areca into two pieces. A green betel leaf is a debt of love. Every afternoon when the market is over, I still reminisce about the figure of the old person…” The song drifted with the wind, mixed with the sound of water lapping at the shore. Miss Bay stopped singing, took a sip of tea and said softly: “In the life of a girl from the West, if you love someone, love them sincerely. That love is like a green betel leaf, the more you chew, the spicier, the stronger, the harder to forget”.

I sat in that scene, feeling the wind blowing through her hair and my heart sank. In that song, there was not only a sad love story but also the loyalty, endurance, and hard work of women from the river region, who always know how to wait, know how to wait, always be patient; know how to preserve their gentle beauty in the midst of a life full of changes. “The life of women in my hometown is hard, but we do not complain. As long as we live, we still love and care for our husbands, children, and neighbors,” Ms. Bay confided.

The saying sounds simple but contains a philosophy of life. Their love is not noisy, not counting the merits but is as quiet as the Tien and Hau rivers, flowing forever in every meal, every fire, every lullaby. Western women are like lotus flowers growing in the mud, like water hyacinths floating in the vast rivers, seemingly fragile but with a strange vitality. They bear the rain and sun, hardships but still maintain the gentle beauty, loyalty and tolerance like the motherland river. They are the roots of love, loyalty, and genuine beauty in the midst of a life full of changes.

Warm hearts

Night fell, the whole village was immersed in the dim yellow light. On the river, the waves reflected the moonlight. I sat by the riverbank, listening to the north wind blowing through the thatched roof, rustling like an old lullaby. I quickly wrote in my notebook: "The north wind season has returned to Vinh Xuong, the land and sky are cold but people's hearts are still warm."

The sky gradually brightened. I left Vinh Xuong in a gentle north wind. The Tien River sparkled with the early morning sun, boats and canoes drifted downstream with the sound of engines and laughter. I looked back at the receding shore, saw the silhouette of Miss Bay hunched over the fire, Uncle Nam Hoanh lighting the fields with smoke. The melody of “Green Betel Leaves” still lingered between the two banks of the river.

Vinh Xuong sends people off with wind, with straw smoke, with a genuine smile that is as warm as a country fire. I suddenly understand that the love of Vinh Xuong people is not noisy, not pretentious, but is unusually generous, generous and loyal. They are poor but not narrow-minded, work hard but do not complain, live honestly like the Tien and Hau rivers, love others as they love themselves. The north wind season not only signals the new crop but also reminds people that, in the hustle and bustle of life, there are still hearts that know how to keep each other warm, like the fire in the straw stove of aunts and mothers, like the song "Green betel leaves" still resounding in the middle of the long night.

Goodbye Vinh Xuong, the headwaters, where the Mekong flows into Vietnam. I carry with me the gentle north wind and the simple affection and kindness of the people, of the local officials. In that place, every inch of land, canal bank, and roof is soaked with the sweat and dedication of the border people. I believe that in the future, Vinh Xuong will rise to become the growth pole of the province, as the wishes of those who are day and night keeping this headwaters forever green and forever peaceful.

MINH HIEN

Source: https://baoangiang.com.vn/mua-gio-bac-ve-a466253.html