Oh My Homeland!
During his trip in Viet Nam, songwriter Pham Duy was approached by a young innocent girl from Hau Giang selling “ve so” (lotto). He wanted to help by offering some money but the girl refused. She requested that he would buy some “ve so” from her. After buying the whole book of her “ve so” and walking away, the girl called him back and gave him her hairclip to thank him for what he did. Touched by the little girl, he penned down a song called “Chiec Cap Toc Thom Tho” (Fresh Scent of a Hairclip) to share his interaction with the little girl and his experience in our homeland. The inspirational lyrics along with Mong Thuy’s melancholic vocals warm up my heart. I need to go back, back to where I belong.
Concerning this stereotypical job among many Vietnamese children that has etched towards popularity today, I am humbled by the different approach that this little girl tended towards her customer. Here, such innocence is truthfully conducted, like how the youth should be, youthful and heartful, not mechanisms of programmed money collectors. Such simplicity, such raw interaction stemmed from one child alone that it factually punctured a minature slip into music history so famously written by Pham Duy.
I got caught up in tears as I apphrehended this content…it is humbling to my self-being. We have yet to return home to where we came from, where we youthfully belong.