Poem by Nguyen Duy: "Searching for Relatives" - Commemorating 50 Years of National Reunification

Nguyen Duy is one of the great and representative poets of modern Vietnamese poetry, widely known among students, researchers, literary critics, and the general public. Nguyen Duy has many outstanding poems and poetry collections that are deeply connected to the Vietnamese soul, accompanying the nation's journey throughout its long historical struggle for peace, unification, and reconstruction. Nguyen Duy's poetry also represents the reconstruction and modernization of the timeless, enduring, profound, yet incredibly fresh values ​​of Vietnamese folklore and national identity in its form of expression.
The seminar was honored to welcome poets and literary critics from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Hanoi Pedagogical University, the Specialized High School for Social Sciences and Humanities, the Vietnam Women's Publishing House, poets, poetry lovers, and a large number of students from various schools.
In her opening remarks at the seminar, Dr. Nguyen Thi Nam Hoang – Deputy Head of the Faculty of Literature – affirmed the position and important contributions of Nguyen Duy's poetry to the poetic life and the spiritual life in general of the Vietnamese nation. According to her, "Having won first prize in the 1972-1973 poetry competition of the Literature and Arts weekly, the A-list Poetry Award in 1985 from the Vietnam Writers Association (for the collection 'Moonlight'), and the State Prize for Literature and Arts in 2007, perhaps the greatest award and reward for poet Nguyen Duy is that his works remain in the memory, affection, and respect of generations of readers. From those who once fought for peace, to the people who live in thatched huts and bamboo groves, to couples on dates, and children sitting in school, who hasn't recited verses about the simple yet resilient beauty of the 'unyielding' bamboo that "refuses to grow crooked" and "love each other, bamboo doesn't stand alone, a fortress is built from that, oh people," who hasn't pondered, "Looking up at the moon, there's something that stirs within, like fields and seas, like rivers and forests...", and then playfully remembering a time of "Learning" "The boy is devilish, the girl is angelic, the teacher arranges for the angel to sit near the devil," when dating, "Hearing the sound of regret for an ordinary day passing by," or feeling wistful because "I live my whole life as a human being, Yet I can never fully understand all the lullabies my mother sang"...
For the Faculty of Literature at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Faculty of Linguistics and Literature - Hanoi University), Nguyen Duy is not only a poet whose verses are filled with passion, but also a member of a close-knit community. After years of fighting in the resistance war against the US, poet Nguyen Duy was a student of the 16th cohort of the Faculty of Linguistics and Literature - Hanoi University, and he always held deep affection and attachment to his teachers, friends, and generations of Literature students, and to the University of Hanoi - Humanities. His return to participate in the "Finding Relatives" seminar is also a testament to that precious sentiment. The seminar was lively, led by researchers Tran Hinh and Nguyen Hung Vi, and Dr. Nguyen Thi Nam Hoang. Poet Nguyen Duy brought the audience through a range of emotions with his passionate verses, along with sharing about his poetic journey, his struggles, and his creative process. Despite his poor health, the poet maintained a spirited and enthusiastic demeanor while reciting his poems, recounting the circumstances surrounding their creation, and expressing his feelings and reflections on the country, the nation, and poetry. Researchers, students, and pupils attending the seminar asked many interesting questions and engaged in discussions about modern Vietnamese poetry and literature, empathy and creativity in poetry, and specific poems by Nguyen Duy. Many students expressed their immense happiness at having read poetry and "met" the poet in textbooks and writings for many years, and now, at the seminar, being able to meet him in person and be strongly inspired by him.   Ms. Khuc Thi Hoa Phuong – representative of Vietnam Women's Publishing House and poet Nguyen Duy presented several volumes of Nguyen Duy's poetry published by Vietnam Women's Publishing House to students who asked insightful questions and contributed valuable opinions during the seminar.
Concluding the seminar, Dr. Do Thu Hien – Head of the Department of Vietnamese Literature – the unit directly proposing and organizing the seminar, thanked poet Nguyen Duy, researchers, critics, teachers, and students for their presence. Dr. Do Thu Hien stated that the seminar demonstrated that despite the many worries and concerns of contemporary life, poetry and literature remain an important source of values ​​and spiritual nourishment for young people and for human life. The Nguyễn Duy Poetry Roundtable: “Searching for Relatives” – Commemorating 50 Years of National Reunification, serves as a bridge connecting a literary author, researchers, and literary critics with readers; connecting those who love poetry, literature, and peace, and who cherish the beautiful humanistic values ​​of the country, its people, and its nation, as Nguyễn Duy wrote in his poem “Searching for Relatives” shortly after the war ended:

To those who have not yet met their relatives Oh, you who have not met your relatives! wife lost her husband He lost her Parents lose their child Who else is still here? Who died?

Oh, those who haven't seen their relatives! Please come and share my warm home. Sing this song with me the great thing that remains today is intact People Fatherland!