Once upon a time in Soc Trang…
To remember my dear father and all young classmates who unfortunately passed away - Lâm Đắc Huệ, Ngô Thời An, Nguyễn Thu Phong, Lê Công Trình, Trịnh Tấn Tước, Phạm Quang Vinh and Lưu Thị Ngân Hà …
Everything comes and goes away...only memory stays…
Wherever we go and live, one will never forget their old school with so many souvenirs and joys of childhood. In any circumstances, I always remember the school of these old days where my youth was alive...
Anyone would acknowledge their teachers in these years and things had changed with time when we left high school. Despite the fact that we are now scattered around the world, you will however never forget those souvenirs under Hoang Dieu and Taberd Saigon school where we learned life lessons, learned to write and read, to love and to enjoy our childhood…Remember your school, Hoang Dieu and Lasalle Taberd Saigon high school is always in our mind…
Nevertheless, I always remember and acknowledge the grace from all former Hoang Dieu teachers who provided me an excellent training which helped me to prepare my educational journey for my life. It was considered as a treasure or a gift of life with unmeasurable value. Through this writing I would like to express my sincere thanks to all my teachers, particularly Professor Phan Van Nhieu and Brother Rector of Lasalle Khanh Hung Brother Nguyễn Đăng Quang who helped me to apply and pursue my terminal class in Lasalle Taberd Saigon in the Red Hot summer 72. I don’t forget to thank also these teachers from Hoang Dieu – Nguyen Tu Thiep, Nguyen Thai Lan, Nguyen Ngoc Lan, Nguyen Thi Muoi, Musical and Fine art with professor Thien and The, former Chu Van An and Taberd professor Lê Mậu Thống, Nguyễn Văn Đàng, Đặng Đức Kim and Brothers Bonnard Trần Đình Bá, Edmond Nguyễn Văn Công, SH Trần Quang Nghiêm, etc…
Time flies…. In school there are very little occasions to meet friends due to work load. It left very little time to chat with all classmates because we are so busy with family out of school time…
I was not fortunate to accomplish my high school program in Hoang Dieu due to the mobilization order issuance in the Fiery red summer of 1972. I had to skip out the class of 10B1 two months before school completion in order to write the National Baccalaureate Part 1. I had two months to prepare the examination which normally required 1 year of preparation. Then I continued my Terminal class in Lasalle Taberd Saigon in 1972. After 7 years of high school all former classmates of 10B1 (71-72) had graduated and went to different directions – some of them obeyed military obligation, some pursued their university, some pursued study abroad and the rest prepared their work place…They all finally live their own lives. They lived through their determination and luck. Some of them have well succeeded, others had bad luck… We are all like birds with mature wings without determined horizon. It was time to decide our own future and what left to Hoang Dieu and Taberd Saigon high school is your trace and your mind set of the class 10B1 (HD 71-72) and class 12B2 (Taberd 72-73)…
We remember the following friends and classmates who unfortunately passed away at the young age – Lam Dac Hue, Ngo Thoi An, Nguyen Thu Phong, Le Cong Trinh, Trinh Tan Tuoc, Phạm Quang Vinh and Luu Thi Ngan Ha…
Looking back life at Hoang Dieu and Taberd schools with a lot of memory and difficulty that we all went through in those years, we should think, the difficulty that young students of next generation are facing today and the way to help and encourage them to achieve their goal in order to maintain the Hoang Dieu tradition. The tradition in which students must be working hard, obeying their teachers, maintaining competitive spirit and to prepare well their university …At the end these are rewards for their teachers, brothers and sisters.
The education that I absorbed from these High Schools was an asset for the preparation of my excellent educational journey for life…Students as well as teachers are scattered around the world and getting older. Their grey hairs grow longer and their hands started to shake due to anxiety and concerns of their day-to-day lives…They are well deserved for a healthy retirement. We wish them an excellent health and a long life…
Soc Trang is my hometown where I was born and grew up. Despite living only 17 years in this town and 36 years in Canada, I got a warm welcome from my family and my former classmates every time I came back to visit it. To describe a country or a town one must think about its culture, its geography and its people. Through this memory I like to describe my Soc Trang hometown, my sweet home:
Soc Trang is a Mekong Delta coastal province which is home to large groups of three ethnics – Khmer, Chinese and Vietnamese. They live peacefully in community without ethnic distinction. Soc Trang is characterised by its varied culture, lush vegetation, harsh sun and a rich history. Its peoples are simple and kind. With its hardworking and hospitable peoples, fascinating mixed culture and stunning scenery I am proud to be part of it, but in a Red Hot summer day of 1972 I had to leave all souvenirs behind in order to pursue my study in Lasalle Taberd Saigon. Soc Trang is my soul…and again in a fall sad day of 1973 I had to leave everything behind in order to prepare my future and my career in Canada.
Following the national highway no 1A from Saigon to Soc Trang, one will pass by My-Thuan Bridge and Can Tho ferry which is my father native land…
The Can-Tho bridge which is currently under construction and will be achieved in mid-2010, reminds me the connection between former students-teachers of old HD school is underway. A relationship was lost for a long time. The new Can Tho Bridge will potentially improve local economy of Soc Trang and other provinces downstream. It will facilitate the flow of goods between Capital and countries and will bring/pull more talents to the Soc Trang town as well as more foreign investors, more qualified teachers and workers...
Once arriving in Soc Trang, one will enjoy the view of the green land dotted with boundless paddy fields, shrimp pond, lush orchards burdened with fruits and ancient Khmer pagodas nested in the three gardens. Moreover you will have opportunity to savour fascinating and unique dishes of this town…
I am divided by two streams of thinking. I was born and raised in Soc Trang but the homeland of my father is Phong Dinh, Can Tho today. Every event that happened in this province concerned me a lot because I knew that my relatives were living there. I started my secondary education in Hoang Dieu but graduated from Lasalle Taberd College in Saigon. I grew up and lived my childhood in Viet Nam but worked in Canada.
My hometown is part of the Southern provinces but my spouse originated from Northern part of Viet Nam. My family is practicing Buddhism but my spouse is a Catholic. But we are unanimous, for sure in one thing that I have only one wife like my father…
People don’t forget to buy home some pia cake (banh pia Vung Thom), crisp sesame cake (me Sung), Chinese sausage (lap xuong) and pounded rice grains (com dep). In addition, the indigene will never forget their traditional local specialities such as rice vermicelli in snakehead fish (bun nuoc leo) and pork-stuffed fried cake (banh cong)…
Bat Pagoda (Chùa Dơi)
Following Le Hong Phong st. towards My Xuyen district just 1 km from the City Centre. The ancient pagoda of Khmer people is originally named Mahatuk (Ma Toc). It houses a great number of bats and crows which fly for food at day and come back at night. However, one can get an interesting glimpse of some bats hanging upside down from the tree branches during the day. These bats respected well their surroundings. They don’t disturb them by flying out of their territory seeking for foods. One must visit the Bat Pagoda to understand more about the tale of its bats.
Clay pagoda (Chùa Đất Sét)
The pagoda is also called Buu Son Temple, locating on Ton Duc Thang st in the city of Soc Trang. Clay was the main material for building the pagoda and carving the statues. Clay is more than 200 years old. Notably the pagoda has 8 huge candles on display. There are 6 unburned large ones with some 200kg in weight and 1.6 m in height, and two smaller ones which have been burning for over three decades. This pagoda is visited by local and foreign tourists who come to burn incense and to see the display of precious clay items such as the thousand Buddha statues and the four sacred animals (dragon, unicorn, turtle and phoenix)
Freshwater Pond (Hồ Nước Ngọt)
It is composed of 2 ponds: the smaller one, previously Hồ Tịnh Tâm and the big one (Hồ Nước Ngọt) which was originally the irrigational work hand-diggered by thousands of Soc Trang dwellers after 75. The pond has numerous shady trees scientifically named Hopea cordata, gracefully beautiful areca trees plus casuarinas trees and flamboyant trees which have been very long present here. Nuoc Ngot is seen as the lung of Soc Trang City. Almost all cultural events of Soc Trang take place here.
When I was young my father and I walked in to Nuoc Ngot Pond every morning for jogging. He reminded us that he was born to be a worker but you should be working hard to succeed in life and to be recognized as a good citizen who will be helpful for Vietnamese community as well as for your hometown Soc Trang.
In a May Day of 2009 I came back to this town to commemorate my Father who passed away 6 months ago and to burn incense on his tomb as a tradition. Then I walked in to Nuoc Ngot Pond to remember my father who sacrificed his entire life for our family for a unique wisdom – all kids grow up, succeed well in society and be helpful to community. His dream becomes a reality but he is no longer with us to witness these successes anymore. Through the years he blessed us with his wisdom on life, by which we live today. Sometime the road to life becomes unbearable, and it is easier to give up than to go on, but he always reminded us that there is light at the end of the tunnel.
It reminded me of a tale in a movie ‘’for every tear; you smile, for every rainy day; there will be a rainbow, and for every moment; there will be someone there to love you’’ a father said to the son… He continued ‘’I will carry you over the rocky road, and lead you through the tunnels. I will share with you, the smiles, the tears, the rainy days and the rainbows. Whenever you need me… I will be there’’.
Dad is in our hearts every day. We miss his love, words of guidance and kindness of Soc Trang people…Even though our lives have changed forever, we are doing our best to honour his memory and maintain the tradition of hardwork which he taught us. Not a day goes by that we do not think of dear Dad.
Suddenly it poured light rain on my way out of Nuoc Ngot Pond which reminded me that I permanently lost a treasure forever….
Written in Montréal in the occasion of Father’s Day 2009
Nguyễn Hồng Phúc
HD 67-72, Lasalle Taberd Saigon 72-73
Edited by Nguyễn Tuyết – HD 83-86
Consulted documents:
Tourist Guide Mekong Delta Region
Việt Nam Quê hương mến yêu - Tivi Việt Tiến Toronto Canada
