Since I am now on a special diet – no high fiber food whatsoever, only fruit juices and vegetable broth, my mom decided to get a new and nicer fruit juicer for me. But somehow it did not work. My grandma suggested: “Call Uncle Chi! He lives nearby, and he’s a man, he will know how to fix it”. But he had some guests over at home, so he could not come help us. We tried to call some other people, but they were all busy as well.
I remember thinking to myself: my dad could have fixed it - he is quite handy. But he is no longer living with us. He is still a handy man, but he is just not OUR handy man anymore.
So we are still waiting for my uncle to stop by to fix the broken fruit juicer. Then it might take him a day or two to finish the job. I can’t help but wonder how long it will take us to wait for a handy man to come fix our broken home, and how long it will take him to do that?
Wait - I think my mom just decided that we should just get a new fruit juicer. So I guess we’ll just build a new home then. We don't really need a handy man, do we?
Your writing reminds me of Duong Thu Huong's writing. Her story about the roof breaks my heart. I am reading a compilation of short stories about life in VN. It's sad to think that sad stories are a common theme about the Vietnamese people. It reminds me of a boat ride I took around the Red River Delta with my Vietnamese friends (all women). It was so beautiful and sad to share the experience with them. The night hides all the ugliness of the area. All I saw was a peaceful and beautiful night that bottles all the anger and sadness of life in Hanoi. My friends were excited to discover beauty in their city but the excitement soon subsided with the realization that the boat ride would end eventually and they would have to face the harsh reality of being being Vietnamese women in Vietnam.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your life and thoughts with us. I really admire your honesty.
I love you.
T
Wow - this entry is so deep! Everytime I read it there's a new layer of meaning - very impressed!
ReplyDeleteVa vua doc lai lan nua va kieu qua' thi'ch!!!! Love the simplicity of it! Minh phuc ban qua' ban Hoa a! Ca doi mi`nh hoc cung chi de viet duoc nhu ban thoi.
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