Who goes to Nghi Duc to see...

Nghi Duc afternoon market has no official name. It is a temporary market, open in the afternoon, located next to a bridge and not far from a pagoda, so people call it "afternoon market", "bridge market" or "pagoda market" as they like. But no matter what name it is called, the shape of the market has not changed at all, with a few makeshift kiosks selling a little meat, fish, and vegetables. At the beginning of the market, there is a sugarcane juice cart. I remember back then, my friend and I often passed by the afternoon market on our way home from school and every now and then we would stop by to buy sugarcane juice. A glass of sugarcane juice cost only one thousand dong, and we split it in half. Until now, the sugarcane juice cart is still in the same place, the only difference is that the sugarcane is pressed by electricity instead of by hand like before.

The road in the village is now concrete.

You sighed and said what a strange country, it has been decades and nothing has changed. I laughed, but Nghi Duc has changed a lot, can the two of us find a way back home?

In fact, Nghi Duc has also changed, but people often compare it with other areas, so they are not satisfied. Like the road running across the afternoon market or the roads inside the hamlet, which used to be bumpy with rocks, are now paved with asphalt or concrete. Street lights go inside the hamlet. The few remaining tiled houses are now lost in the midst of newly built houses.

When I was in Saigon, my friends often asked me where I was from. If I answered "Nghi Duc", you had to spend a few seconds searching your memory for a place with that name, then shaking your head: "khiet bong". So I explained again: "Nghi Duc is a mountainous commune in Tanh Linh district, Binh Thuan province. From base 6, it's about 60 kilometers or from Ong Don intersection, it's about the same distance...". You wondered, near "Lac beach", right? Yeah, well... close. That "close" is more than 20 kilometers, equal to the time it takes to cycle for several hours, but you have to accept it so you can imagine your hometown. Now, just type it on Google and you'll know exactly where Nghi Duc is. If it doesn't change, then what?

You said, what you said is no different from the time of eating mixed potatoes with white rice, just enough to fill the stomach. I can only "um" to get through the story but cannot explain to you that sometimes the old things and the little change make my footsteps linger. Coming back to the village fields, seeing the rice sprouting and gently exuding the scent, I remember wading in the ditches to catch crabs and snails. Walking on the roads cut along the chessboard, stepping on the iron bridge across the stream, passing the afternoon market, the banana garden... as if there are still footprints. Then just reaching the end of the village, I see the third lady and the seventh uncle chattering away: "Just got back?", "How's business going?", "Are your wife and children well?"... Things that even in our dreams we would never see in a crowded city. Like you, if we hadn't seen the "afternoon market" scene similar to 20 years ago, would we be excited to show off?

Rice in bloom on Nghi Duc field

Both you and I have been through many lands, sometimes in one place, after a few months of going back, we see a difference. So in our hearts, we always hope that Nghi Duc will change more, that people's lives will improve, and that there will be no more "selling our faces to the ground and our backs to the sky". But each land has its own mission. If Binh Thanh in your place is noisy, bustling, with many conveniences; Phu My in my place has the sound of train whistles, industrial parks creating waves of people at the end of the work day, Nghi Duc is gentle, peaceful, and the people are simple and honest like cassava and sweet potatoes.

Nghi Duc, a land located in the west of Binh Thuan province. Until now, many people still do not know whether it belongs to the Central or the Southeast region. But thanks to its special location, Binh Thuan people in general and Nghi Duc in particular have inherited the diligence and hard work of the Central region people as well as the chivalry of the Eastern people "hard-working but brave". That was clearly demonstrated through the resistance war against foreign invaders, and the title "Hero of the People's Armed Forces" awarded to Nghi Duc by the Party and State in 1999 was a recognition. Nghi Duc has nothing on the economic map, it is not a famous tourist destination that makes visitors fall in love. This salty and spicy place only has a lot of affection so that children who have left far away like me or you, want to come back to visit for a few days every holiday.

Or like my grandmother, 85 years old, unable to live alone in Nghi Duc, had to leave to live with her children and grandchildren. But every afternoon when she comes home, she looks out the alley, recalling stories about the land and people in the land she has been attached to for almost her entire life. Then she hums:

Who comes to Nghi Duc to see

Neighborhood love is enough to enlighten the heart...

The Eastern Spirit Writing Contest, organized by Thanh Nien Newspaper in collaboration with Phu My 3 Specialized Industrial Park, is an opportunity for readers to share their deep feelings about the land and people of the Southeast provinces (including Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Tay Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City), and at the same time contribute good practices, new models, creative and dynamic thinking of Eastern people. Authors can submit entries in the form of essays, memoirs, notes, press reports, etc. for a chance to receive attractive prizes with a total value of up to 120 million VND.

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