Let’s also remember those arduous years
So that our hearts are not ashamed before our homeland…
Lai Hong Khanh, a seasoned poet from Vietnam, shares his poem
Lai Hong Khanh, born in 1950, in Phu Xuyen – Hanoi, is a member of Vietnam Writers Association, Vietnam Journalists Association and Vietnam Lawyers Association. His published works include ‘The White Ferry Call’ (Poetry – 1990), ‘Writing through the Forest’ (Literature – 2002), ‘Summer Heart’ (Poetry – 2001), ‘Time Fully Loaded’ (Poetry – 2014), ‘Vietnamese Spirit’ (Poetry- 2020), ‘Every Morning’ (Poetry – 2021) and ‘Kinh Bac Moon’ (Poetry – 2007). He is recipient of Silver Prize for “Mother of Pearl” literary script contest at the National Television Festival in 2002.
Remember together
Remember together Together with the young men who went ahead that year
We went to where guns roared
The green “boonie hat” – a circle of cherished memories
The “Truong Son walking stick” tapping rhythm on the Truong Son range
Like the flesh and blood of our homeland, for the body of our homeland
“Descendants of Lac Viet and Hong Bang”* went to where they were needed
The “boonie hat” from mountains, fields, rivers, seas
Together with the people, made the great victory of spring
The green “boonie hat” in the hearts of the people
Like myriad leaves forming a vast forest of trees and leaves
So many young men from a hundred homelands, a hundred directions The peaceful rivers and mountains returned to everyday life
The young men who set off that year
Who lost, who remained, who rejoiced, who struggled!
Let’s also remember those arduous years
So that our hearts are not ashamed before our homeland
To those young men who set off that year.
*This word describes the background of the Vietnamese people.
Hong Bang refers to a dynasty that emerged in early Vietnamese history, which lasted 2,622 years (2879-258 BC).
And Lac Viet is for Lac Long Quan, the legendary founder of the Vietnamese nation.
Regardless of where it comes from, Lac Hong is roughly understood as the ancestor and origin of Vietnamese people. And the Vietnamese take great pride in our heritage.
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