April is full of memories

Tang Hoang Phi

(QBĐT) - So the days of April have begun. The earth and sky have entered the early days of summer, everywhere the golden sunshine shines warmly. Strangely, standing in the midst of the earth and sky of April, my heart misses April terribly.

Those were the sweet sunny days of April, I was in the form of a tiny little girl of ten years old, following my mother, running barefoot around the garden filled with green. My mother's gentle figure diligently pulled out each weed, along each tree root, and carefully held each flower so that the bees could see clearly to collect nectar and pollinate. While being a mother, she whispered intimate words to the grass and the trees. I felt like a little princess in the middle of a fairy garden, where there was only the color of peace stretching endlessly. A gentle breeze blew by, making the lilac petals flutter, their striking purple color making me look up. The air was so cool and fresh! My mother said it was the time of the changing seasons, so I felt so comfortable.

Illustration photo. Source: Internet

In April, the rice in the fields is now ready to form ears, just a little while more, when the thunder rumbles, the rice will bloom and rise. I remember the days when I went to the fields with my mother to visit the rice. My mother looked at the fields and hummed the folk song: "The winter rice is peeking out from the banks/Whenever I hear the thunder, I wave my flag and rise." The first thunders of the season, my mother waited for as if she were waiting for a new bumper crop of golden rice, full of ears, with so much hope from the fragrant pearls of heaven. After visiting the fields, she went to catch each crab to improve the family meal. During the days of famine, I remember the simple meals with a bowl of hot crab soup, salty with the smell of the fields. And every time I remember, I feel lost in the midst of the memories of warm family meals.

April is filled with nostalgia for the sound of cicadas in my hometown, the familiar sounds of my childhood when I and my friends roamed through sleepless summer afternoons. The chirping of cicadas outside the alley, on the custard apple and guava branches, on the top of the longan and mango trees signaled a brilliant summer. The poor country children with their burnt, golden hair eagerly picked up poles to catch cicadas to play. The joy of my childhood was so simple, wrapped in the chirping sound that made me happy all day. The joy crept into my sleep, at night I laughed out loud dreaming of teasing the cicadas in an empty matchbox.

In April, I miss the season of laden fruits, the tropical country has bestowed upon the Vietnamese people so many delicious fruits. Mangoes, plums, star fruit… And every April, I want to return to the old garden to listen to the trees tell stories, to listen to the earth turning, the branches and leaves whispering secret stories. I let my soul drift with the wind, feeling everything as light as a fluffy cloud floating across the sky.

April reminds me of the red phoenix flowers and the bright purple lagerstroemia flowers in the schoolyard. I remember the days of students wearing pure white dresses, and in the final year of high school, I picked up phoenix flowers and pressed them into butterfly wings in my friends’ yearbooks. Seeing April means seeing the summer ahead, the exam season awaiting the “candidates” at the crossroads of life. Life is happy when we can live our student years to the fullest in the arms of teachers and friends. The purple ink is still there, marking the love and dreams of the “first devil, second ghost…” age.

April is filled with nostalgia for the smoky, sad eyes of him, a former soldier of Uncle Ho's army. The war has been over for decades, but his memories are still there. He always talks about his comrades, the brave soldiers who fought bravely to save the country. Some unfortunately shed blood on the battlefield, those who stayed behind like him always ache for the wounds of their old friends. What remains in him and those who stayed behind are medals, red flags with yellow stars, rubber sandals, pith helmets... Recalling the glorious historical month of April, the day of national reunification, the great pride of those with Vietnamese blood. April also reminds us of those who have forever laid down their lives for the sake of the Fatherland...

April is always full of memories for me. Today, on a leisurely April day, in a place far away from home, my heart is filled with tears as I think back to the past, those magically clear days. I realize that the peaceful place is the April days in my hometown, my heart has been soothed and nurtured by simple love. And I want to say that I love April so much!

Source: https://baoquangbinh.vn/van-hoa/202504/thang-tu-menh-mang-noi-nho-2225485/