Poetry collection Heart of the Island (Kim Dong Publishing House) - Photo: HO LAM
Reading The Heart of the Island with 26 poems about life in Truong Sa, readers feel a simple, poetic Truong Sa archipelago with many colors and from there, the love for the homeland and the islands grows...
Ho Huy Son has many unforgettable experiences with this land. He said that the island only has one classroom, so that classroom is very special because it has all the classes from kindergarten, grade 1 to grade 5. To continue studying, the children will have to leave the island and return to the mainland.
"Coming here, I feel one pity for the adults and ten pity for the children. Although there are many shortages, the children on the remote island are still very carefree. Seeing them happily eating ice cream or reading each page of the book, the gifts that the uncles and aunts from the mainland bring, my heart is filled with emotion," Ho Huy Son expressed.
Returning to the city after more than a week at sea, while still feeling "landsick", Mr. Son had the idea of writing a collection of children's poems about Truong Sa.
"I want to tell you about the things I had the opportunity to experience when I came to Truong Sa archipelago.
And more importantly, I want to send the children a simple message: Truong Sa is a sacred part of our Fatherland!" - Mr. Son said.
It can be said that The Heart of the Island is a collection of poems that condenses what the author has seen, touched and felt about the Truong Sa archipelago.
It is the image of the navy soldier carrying a gun for hours, the families, the classrooms, the temple on the island, the banyan tree, the storms, the lighthouses guarding the island: "The heart of the island/ Is the lighthouse/ Diligent, industrious/ Silently guarding/ Sleeping day and staying awake night/ Guiding ships/ Passing safely/ Smooth sailing".
When arriving at Truong Sa, Ho Huy Son immersed himself in the children growing up here every day and realized that they were special from the way they went to school: "Every step to class/ The sound of waves gently lifted/ The national flag followed/ Singing at the milestone" (Going to School), to the joy of receiving gifts from the mainland: "From the small book page/ The mainland opened/ I watched with delight/ I loved my homeland more!" (The book page crossed the waves).
Or a lovely and peaceful moment of children eating ice cream: "By the milestone/ I eat ice cream/ The wind stops by to watch/ I crave it so much/ The waves seem to be sulking/ Going down and up.../ The ice cream cups/ Are so magical/ Indispensable/ Love for the mainland!" (Eating ice cream by the milestone).
Sharing in the book's epilogue, Ho Huy Son confided that the smiles, eyes, and especially the delicious ice cream moments of the children on the remote island gave him strong motivation to compose.
As in the song "That place is Truong Sa", Ho Huy Son arouses curiosity in children: "Where is Truong Sa? / I have never seen it before / Looking at the map of the country / The waves are rolling far from the shore".
And then he decoded: "Truong Sa also has schools/ Students chatter and study/ Under the green banyan trees/ Smiles brighten the morning/ There, day and night, regardless/ The navy's silhouette stands tall/ Protecting the sovereignty of the territorial waters/ Its reputation will resound forever!...".
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/trai-tim-cua-dao-la-ngon-hai-dang-can-man-sieng-nang-lang-tham-canh-gac-20250318082603745.htm
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