Farewell, poet Tran Tri Thong

Poet Tran Tri Thong was born in 1956 in Hai Phong city, but he lives and writes in Ho Chi Minh City. He is a member of the Ho Chi Minh City Writers Association and the Vietnam Writers Association. He has published 8 poetry collections and won several literary awards, including the "Lyric Six-Eight Verse" poetry award, which has made a significant impression on his friends and readers.

Vĩnh biệt nhà thơ Trần Trí Thông - Ảnh 1. — Poet Tran Tri Thong

During his lifetime, poet Tran Tri Thong affirmed: "Poetry is the sublime voice of the soul expressed through the creative use of language, conveyed through writing and to the reader. Poetry reflects the soul, awareness, and intellect of the Vietnamese people, connected to their love of life, work, and nation-building."

I remember ten years ago, while enjoying a drink together at a literary gathering in the former Go Vap district, poet Tran Tri Thong said: "Phung Hieu, in your writing, do you see that poetry only knows how to take without ever asking for anything in return? Do you realize that a poet gives everything?" I suddenly felt a pang of understanding, but was also a little surprised by his question...

Upon hearing the news of poet Tran Tri Thong's passing, many colleagues expressed their sorrow. Poet Tran Mai Huong expressed: "I mourn the loss of a poet of lyrical six-eight meter poetry with melodious and soaring verses. May his soul rest in peace in that distant realm. Rest in peace, brother." "I must say I am truly saddened that Tran Tri Thong has so suddenly left us all. I feel sorrow for a poet whose simple, kind, and lyrical six-eight meter style was loved by many readers," shared poet Nguyen Hung.

Vĩnh biệt nhà thơ Trần Trí Thông - Ảnh 2. — The epic poem *"The Front Line Near the Front"* - a representative work by the poet Tran Tri Thong.

As for poet Nhat Quynh, within just 30 minutes of hearing the tragic news, she completed a deeply emotional six-eight syllable poem: "...Tonight the moon is half-crescent/My feet sit weeping, my feet filled with sorrow/Is it rain or the tears of the sky?/From now on, the six-syllable verse closes, the words are trembling/My heart aches with a thousand intertwined threads/The departing person closes a 'new lament'/The departing person closes their image/I still hear the eight-syllable verse twisting and turning with pain/Life is like a colorless fairy tale/The poem is like the last reeds of the season/This sorrow is sent entirely to me/The person becomes a white cloud flying across the horizon...".

The poignant verses of poet Nhật Quỳnh are like the collective lament of all his colleagues and friends, bidding farewell to a lyrical poet as he departs to a distant land...

According to information from the family, the remains of poet Tran Tri Thong are being kept at 180/1A3 Duong Quang Ham, KP22, An Nhon Ward, Ho Chi Minh City (formerly 364/40 Duong Quang Ham), and will later be taken for burial at the Ho Chi Minh City Policy Cemetery in Cu Chi.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/vinh-biet-nha-tho-tran-tri-thong-185251030070624623.htm