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The taste of old-time Tet cannot be described as sweet, spicy or salty like the dishes I cook every day but it is imprinted in my memory. When my parents were still alive, there were no worries, and I eagerly looked forward to Tet and the springs.
On each Tet holiday, I followed my mum to the market to buy dong leaves to make Banh Chung. I visited every stall and took a look. My favorite was the clothes stall, where I inhaled the smell of new fabrics and smiled when my mum chose the right outfits for three days of Tet holiday. I went home to help my dad prepare a five-fruit tray and waited for him to wrap little Banh Chung for me. With his gentle smiles, he gave a pair of Banh Chung to my brother and said they were made for me, making my brother jealous and me satisfied.
I love sitting by the Banh Chung pot, watching my dad adding water, grilling potatoes and eating until my mouth turns black. The savory smell of sticky rice kept me staying beside the pot with my dad, then falling asleep on my dad’s lap. The glutinous rice grains that my mum took care of from early mornings in the fields, full of scents of heavens and earth, growing after my mum had sweated a lot, were wrapped in dong leaves and became soft Banh Chung. Until now, I have still thought that Banh Chung my dad wrapped is still the most delicious.
Children and grandchildren gathered during Tet holiday in my hometown
The taste of old-time Tet to me is the wafting incense scent, the savory sticky rice, the squealing sound of pigs in the neighborhood. The sound of knives, chopping boards, crackling fire, firecrackers on Lunar New Year's Eve and the sound of calling each other to go to the temples to worship and receive blessings. And especially the reunion meals, which might be not luxurious but are full of happiness… All are unforgettable tastes of Tet.
“This year, when the pandemic is still like this, how will Tet be?”. The question a neighboring man asked his companion woke me up from a dream of memories. It was sunny and a bit dry, and I kept maneuvering my wheelchair, looking at the sky and earth while thinking about the atmosphere during Tet in the small village in the past. I felt like I was wheeling back to the beautiful memories.
Wearing the new outfits my mum bought, hoping my dad would give me lucky money, eagerly holding their hands to visit my relatives during Tet. My pocket was always filled with dry watermelon seeds, pumpkin seeds, some candies, biscuits, sometimes even some firecrackers I had just picked. The smells of firecrackers, Banh Chung, meat jelly and incense excited me. I did not know what to call it, I just knew that when they came, Tet came, and I felt happy. I called them “the smells of Tet”. Now that more than half of my life has passed, I still remember that “smells of Tet” vividly…
Tet is coming, but I am no longer as excited as I used to be. I couldn’t see my dad wrapping Banh Chung and see my mum busy because both of them passed away. When the pandemic broke out, there were thousands of F0 every day in the news. I just look forward to a peaceful Tet. There is no need to go far, as long as my siblings and I could reunite for the death anniversary of my dad, lighting incense sticks in remembrance and whispering to my parents. We will talk to each other and recalled memories which are hard to find in our busy life.
The incense scent will fill the small alley, wafting in the wind. I will deeply inhale that sweet scent as if I could feel the taste of old-time Tet creeping in me!
Translator: Nhan Nguyen
