Dear brothers and sisters,

From the corner where two red cotton trees used to stand, turn right, there is a small bridge spanning a small canal. The canal is 3m wide and 10m long. The canal is partially blocked at both ends, so its water becomes muddy, black and smelly.

There is a house across the bridge. The house faces a small road and stands right on the bank of the canal. In front of the house there is a fence. Along the fence and along the small road, there are many aloe vera plants. And along the canal, there are a mango tree and a paperflower tree. The mango tree is in a yard of the house, and the paperflower tree is outside the fence. Continue reading Next to the black canal →

Dear brothers and sisters,

At the corner of the Romantic Road and a small road, there were two red cotton trees (Bombax ceiba – cây hoa gạo).

The first time I saw the trees, it was winter, the sky was gloomy and going to rain and I just got to the end of the Romantic Road which at that time was the trash road. I saw the trees because their red flowers stood out in the whole space. They both welcomed me to my new home in Saigon and gave me a feeling of closeness as if I were in Thai Binh, my hometown. They made me emotional. Continue reading Red cotton trees →

Dear brothers and sisters,

At the corner of the Romantic Road and a main road, there is a lady selling sugarcane juice on the sidewalk under some rain trees (Samanea Saman trees – cây me tây). The sugarcane juice cart has appeared after someone cleaned up the Romantic Road. Continue reading Rain trees →

Dear brothers and sisters,

After someone cleaned up the Romantic Road, a flock of chickens appeared. They were one rooster, one hen and eight chicks. They belonged to a house that I couldn’t see clearly from the roadside.

The house was at the end of a small path perpendicular to the Romantic Road, at a middle part of the road. The path was about 15 meter long and nearly 1 meter wide. There were many trees and weeds on both sides of the path, and at the end of the path there were many banana trees. You couldn’t see the house through that jungle. Continue reading Flock of chickens →

Dear brothers and sisters,

My neighbour’s house has a signboard on their wall. The sign has just the letter D and no light. It has broken in the middle a bit.

My neighbour’s house is next to a road. Across the road are rows of Samanea Saman trees (cây me tây). The trees are tall and give a lot of shade. Continue reading New home →

Dear brothers and sisters,

When the Romantic Road was the trash road, at a middle part of the road, on the right side, there were many Panama berry trees (cây trứng cá). No one planted them, they grew on their own.

The trees were about 5m tall. Their branches spread long and drooped down to the ground. Their foliage dangled softly. The flowers with 5 petals were small and white. They bloomed every day. Every time I saw them, they made me happy. It seemed they were saying to me: “How are you?… We miss you…” Continue reading Panama berry trees →

Dear brothers and sisters,

Near the market that I go to every day, there is a coffee shop. Several months ago, there was a feral kitten often lying outside the shop.

Kitten was yellow, not fat, not thin. It liked to lie under the foot of a plant pot, next to a tiny brick house used for decoration. The first time I saw the kitten lie next to that tiny house, I thought it was the kitten’s house, so I wondered why did the kitten not stay indoors. Then I discovered that the door of that house was too small for the kitten. Poor kitten. Continue reading Feral kitten →

Dear brothers and sisters,

A year and a half ago, at the end of the Romantic Road, there were a duck family – five white ones. Their boss was the owner of a restaurant on the Romantic Road.

The first time I saw them, they were one mother duck and four baby ducks. At that time, baby ducks were small, about the size of an adult’s fist. Several months later, four baby ducks became four big ducks. Mother duck took the lead and the four children followed. They looked for food together, then rested together under tree shadow. Every time I saw them, I was happy. Continue reading The last duck →

Dear brothers and sisters,

Udon is a female dog – the brown and white bulldog. My neighbour has been raising her for 7 years. Udon means Japanese noodle, but she is no noodle – she is a bulldog!

My neighbour sells juice and breakfast. The first time I went into her shop to buy coconut, Udon ran out of her house and barked loudly. She grimaced. Because was she a bulldog or was she truly unhappy? I didn’t know but I felt funny when I looked at her face. Continue reading Udon →

Dear brothers and sisters,

My neighbour has been raising a flock of pigeons, about 20 white and grey ones.

In the early morning, they eat and drink something on the ground although they have already had their food in their little huts on the balcony of their house. At noon, they like to lie on the grass and under the shade of Bombax ceiba. In the afternoon, they fly back and forth in the sky. And in the early evening, they play with children.

Looking at them, I feel peace and perhaps most of people do too.

Have a peace day.

Phạm Thu Hương

Dear brothers and sisters,

A year and a half ago, I moved to a new place. The place has been good so I have been satisfied.

The side of the place is a road. The road has no houses, many tall trees and wild plants, many ducks and dogs, many potholes and a lot of trash. The mountains of trash were taller than a person’s head. Most of the trash wasn’t household trash but tables and chairs. However, they also generated stink and dust. Continue reading Magic →