published by don luce -- john c. schafer & j. chagnon
washington d.c. 1971
please give me back
a poem by hoàng minh nhân
This poem and also 'A Dream Which Has Withered' were written
by a twenty year old student. His mother is a refugee and lives
on the outskirts of Đà nẵng. His father died of tuberculosis last
spring (1971) in a 'Rehabilitation Center' in Quảng nam Province,
South Vietnam. Accused of being a 'VC'( member of the Việt Cộng
Infrastructure), his father spent three years chained to the wall
of his cell before he finally died. Two sibblings have also met
tragic deaths from the hand of war: a younger sister killed by
American bombing and an older brother shot by Americans during
an operation in Quảng nam. This student has wandered all over
South Vietnam, going to school for a year is one town and then
a year in another, looking for ways to support himself and his
family. He continues to write stories and poems while attending
the University of Dalat.
by Hoàng Minh Nhân
(p.27 WE PROMISE ONE ANOTHER)
People have said a lot
About the countryside
In difficult and lofty phrases
With feelings dark as night
Cryptic or bitter
As the words of a lover betrayed.
But I would like now to say some simple things,
Simple as a field of rice or sweet potatoes,
Or a silent early morning.
Please let me breathe again
The air of yesterday,
Let children frolic in the sun
With kites over bamboo bridges,
Just a narrow little space will be enough,
Four rows of bamboo trees surrounding;
And leave a little space for an entrance,
A place for a girl and boy to tell the story of the moon,
For old woman with babies to gather and chatter.
Please give me back these things I' ve mentioned
A story so simple
As a bird' s unbroken song,
As a mother,
As a baby
As the life of long age the poet used to tell ...
hmn
(p 26 -. 28 WE PROMISE ONE ANOTHER)
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