Echoing a song of joy

Cheerful cheers

“Oh Nha Trang! Dear coastal city with its gentle winds that add years to life/After 30 years apart, we meet again/The sound of liberation guns is here, blending with the sound of the waves/Echoing from the high cliffs of Deo Ca Pass to the deep caves of Ba Ngoi blood cockles”...

The poem “To Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa Liberation” was published in Nhan Dan Newspaper on April 6, 1975. (Photo courtesy)

Opening with the joyful call of a great reunion, the poem pours out the author’s heartfelt words for the land he loves in a special historical moment. The author repeatedly names a series of familiar places in Khanh Hoa with rising emotions: Deo Ca, Ba Ngoi, Ponagar Tower, Ru Ri, Hon Noi, Hon Ngoai, Cam Ranh… In which, there are more affectionate “close-up” verses for Nha Trang with: Cu Lao, Xom Bong, Cai River, Cay Bang Street, Cay Me, Cau Da, Hai Hoc Vien…

It was a loud cheer that rose to a climax but at times became quiet and passionate, following a feeling of soaring and ethereal flight, impossible to contain, recorded by free verses that seemed to be unconstrained by length: “I suddenly found myself spreading my wings and flying back to Nha Trang into the city/Crossing the Cai River, taking long strides on the main streets, the Bang Tree, the Tamarind Tree…/Returning to Cau Da, looking back at the Naval Academy with hundreds of miraculous fish species/To the coconut villages, the joyful cheers and the sound of the hearse hooves…”.

The poem is also a song praising the feats of the people of Khanh Hoa: "Even the tsunamis followed the big waves, the people rose up and rose up..." ; "The love for the homeland of many heroic martyrs, of Tran Quy Cap - 30 years still holding his head high, indomitable!". Praising the natural beauty bestowed upon Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa with the harmony of the sound of waves, the sound of the sea breeze, the shimmering islands far away, "The sparkling coral reefs, the islands far away with white bird's nests/The rubber forests, the forests of cam xe, mun, trac/The vast fields of January and February awakening...".

After 50 years of re-reading the poem, we still hear “To Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa Liberation” echoing the heroic song of joy that has the power to move people’s hearts through the passage of time. It can be said that this is a valuable work, worthy of a place in the poetry and literature collections of Khanh Hoa province.

About the author Gia Ninh

According to Nhan Dan Newspaper, poet Gia Ninh was born in 1917, from Quang Trach ( Quang Binh ), the son of a Chinese bachelor Pham Gia Khanh. Gia Ninh left his hometown early to study in the land of Huong River and Ngu Mountain. The verse: "The old baby has gone forever/has not returned to visit Gianh River", a verse that contains his feelings of being away from home.

Painter Van Binh, poet Che Lan Vien, journalist Phan Quang, poet Gia Ninh (from left to right). (Photo taken in 1949)

In Hue , Gia Ninh studied with Huy Can. Studying in Hue, many people from Quang Binh wrote poetry. Before Gia Ninh, there was Luu Trong Lai (aka Luu Ky Linh), the older brother of Luu Trong Lu, then Luu Trong Lu and Nguyen Trong Tri (aka Han Mac Tu). Each person came to poetry through a different path.

In 1938, the poem "Worldless Soul" was printed in the newspaper "Today" with an introduction by Thach Lam. Although the poem did not catch the "green eyes" of Hoai Thanh - Hoai Chan to be included in the collection "Vietnamese Poets" like other Quang Binh poets: Luu Ky Linh, Han Mac Tu, Luu Trong Lu, Gia Ninh can still be considered one of the notable poets of Quang Binh right from the years before the August Revolution of 1945.

Although he was a romantic poet, Gia Ninh participated in the resistance war against the French by doing very ordinary things. He used to be an editor for the newspapers "Resistance Zone 4" and "National Salvation Zone 4". During the years of fighting against the US and saving the country, Gia Ninh was in charge of editing poetry for Nhan Dan Newspaper. With fairness and dedication, Gia Ninh discovered many poets of this generation. But he himself was very reserved in introducing himself. After the collection "Growing Up" (Literature Publishing House - 1962), it took more than twenty years for Gia Ninh to publish his second collection "Time Calls" (New Works Publishing House - 1983) and it was not until 1995 that he published "Gia Ninh Anthology" (Literature Publishing House - 1995). He had very timely poems, typically: "Listening to the Call for Resistance at Night" and "To Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa Liberation".

According to Nhan Dan Newspaper, poet Gia Ninh was a propaganda officer during the resistance war against the French. He once held the position of Head of Khanh Hoa Information and Propaganda Department, acting Director of the Central Region Information and Propaganda Department. However, there is no detailed information about when he was Head of Khanh Hoa Information and Propaganda Department. We are trying to verify the sources and will return to the story of poet Gia Ninh with Khanh Hoa when we have the opportunity.

NGUYEN VINH XUONG

Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/van-hoa/202504/vang-vong-mot-khuc-hoan-ca-a9472e7/