Stories...

A couple of weeks ago, I finally found "Touching the Void" DVD, it was one of the movie that was not available on big screen a few years ago when it came out. Although, the movie relates to accident in climbing, mountaineering and companionship/partnership, I think it is more than that. Having read the book some time ago, but watching the movie was even more moving. Many mountaineer people probably focus on the fact that one cut the robe when your partner was hanging on the other end to save your own life, but me, when I read and watched the movie, I actually think how lucky the "unlucky" guy was for having to push himself through hardship, it is just amazing how his personality faced the challenge of nature, how he completed a more than "mission impossible", how he lived when he knew that he would die. I would have loved to be able to know how far I could go to fight for survival.

Another movie that made me think a lot recently was "The Kite runner". The book was super, and I was quite happy that Marc Foster didn't change the story. While watching it, I wondered how many stories like those or worse have actually been told? because in order to tell a story, you have to live it, and stay a live to tell it or at the very least your story is written down, so your children can tell it. But even if it is written down, and is told by your children, will it still be the same without much adding and taking away the parts that they don't want people know? Yeah, we don't often realise or remember how much stories matter or that they can change people's lives. It has been a long time since I read and saw a story about loyalty in friendship, in what is considered good, and the things we should not cowardly do.

People are too selfish and greedy nowadays to take these things into consideration when they make a decision. Greed kills our soul, the things we believe in should not harm another being.

And you, do you have a story to tell?

Happy Rat Year!

After welcoming the western New Year, we Vnese again celebrated our Tet. Of course, in VN, the event was celebrated seriously and funnier. Family members gathered, many came back from foreign land to wish each other many best wishes, beautiful words. Tet is also an occasion to eat many tradition Tet dishes that during the year people might not have time to make them. Many dishes of Tet are made to last at least three days because during these three days, no shops will open, we will just eat and play cards. On the first day of the year, people will go to the pagode to pray for a good year to come, to thank for the stable year that past, to remember those who passed away.



Anyway, Tet for me was much more in the past than now. My family used to make tradition sticky rice cake called banh chung, a Northern tradition rectangular cake (the Southern version is rounded) that is filled with mung beans and marinated pork, then boiled for at least 10h. Because the measure of the cake is about 20x20cm, and each family make more than 10, we used to cook in a big container over night. The fun part of waiting for Tet is to stay awake to watch the banh chung. We often finish wrapping around 6h in the evening, then start boiling them shortly after. Everyone, mostly men gather, play guitar, singing, playing cards while the night sweeps in unnoticed with the slight chill air of spring. I used to not allowed to be around, must be bed ;-(. This year, some friends had an idea to make this cake ourselves instead of buying, so they set up to prepare ingredients for 10 cakes, and off we go. The result was quite satisfied, I will post picture soon. I also made thit kho, ca kho, dua muoi, gio lua, gio bo...yeah, nostalgy comes out of me ;-).



I also went to pagoda to pray and listen to monk's teaching. One of the nice thing to expect when going to the pagoda is to have a great monk teaches and explains symbols in Buddhism. This year we learn about maitreya (friendship, benevolent), Happy Buddha. In VN, we worship HIM as a big fat stomach buddha sitting with 5 or 6 children on his shoulder, knees...His statue is always made with a big smile. That smile symbolises for true happiness, a real smile. We have different type of smiles, every time we smile, people can read how we feel like, smile even when we are sad...His stomach is big (mind you, not because he is drinking too much beer or anything ;-)) because he wants to take all our sadness, worries, angers...to himself, so we can be happy, and smile like he does. That is to explain that we have to share problems with our peers, husbands, wives, friends, and we have to take time to think for ourselves instead of getting involved deeply in mundane things like 8h for work, 8h for sleep...even when we are tired, we should take care of our souls, release stress, worries...so that we can smile a real happy smile. The five children represents the 5 or 6 weaknesses that we human usually are lured into: money, power, sex...

Well, so much for Tet. I would like to wish everyone a good Earth Rat year. Apparently, I am a Earth Horse, but my element is fire ;-). Anyway, chuc mung nam moi!