{Entry for the Humanities Impression Contest - Faculty of Psychology} What's on the campus of the Faculty of Humanities?

The minds of children and very young people often operate in this way: they trust the people around them. Look at all the events in life, and you'll see that this innocent mind is incredibly wise.

However, in essence, very young people are quite naive. Because they don't pay attention, they don't fear the dangers they are walking through.
 

***

I remember every change in the campus landscape from the early 1990s to the present day. Amazing, isn't it? I was still a student in 2008! But perhaps nothing compares to what happened on the University campus in the early mornings and late afternoons in the early 1990s.

Early in the morning, you could see many elderly people and children on the school grounds. They were doing light exercises and enjoying the morning sun. My parents told me to be home before seven o'clock so that "everyone could study and work." But once my parents left for work, my friend and I secretly ran off to play on the school grounds and met many other groups of children.

In the late afternoon, the campus was bustling with students doing their own exercises. Back then, there wasn't a feng shui sphere (which is now gone), but in front of the current Building E, there were many pull-up bars, parallel bars, asymmetrical parallel bars, and basketball hoops. The students back then were so light and agile; it seemed like everyone knew how to get on the bars and stand on one leg while holding on with one hand.

Then, on some evenings, students from the 70s generation held a camp on the campus. They didn't have outdoor LED screens, lighting systems, or smoke machines like they do now. But you know what? The host of one of the student camps said, "Dance, students!" And they danced, they really danced. There was joy and fire in their spontaneous movements.

***

I remember my professor at the University. She always went to work early, I would greet her, and then she would ask about my studies and hobbies. Once, I told her it was my birthday. She took me to the University gate and bought me a cute little stuffed dog as a gift. The professor I met that day was Professor Pham Thi Tran Chau, Doctor of Science in Biology.

Later, right on the school grounds, I witnessed many small, warm gestures of love that people exchanged with one another. I overheard words of comfort between friends after exam seasons, after the uncertain yet exploratory experiences of youth. I saw colleagues helping each other. When we give, not because it's the right thing to do, but because of the genuine sincerity within, that giving has the power to endure through the years.

***

I remember one day, a beautiful car was parked in the courtyard of the University. Back then, everyone dreamed of owning a Honda 80 or 81. A Honda 82 was a dream come true. The black car, with its stylish design that's still fashionable today, parked in the courtyard, brought hope for a future of civilization. My mother took a picture of me next to that car. That day was so much fun; I laughed so hard I almost recoiled in the photo.

In 2020, beautiful, colorful cars were parked on the school grounds, under a trellis of bougainvillea. Sometimes people want to enjoy a photo-worthy spot without cars, just a trellis of flowers. But there's a real spot, with cars and a trellis of flowers, that's definitely worth admiring.
 

In any case, the bougainvillea trellis at Nhan Van is undeniably beautiful, isn't it?

***

I remember a day in 1995 when the name "General University" became part of history. People were getting used to a new, much longer name: "University of Social Sciences and Humanities." I liked this name, immediately, I liked it very much. Many words sounded elegant; that was my belief at the time.

Following the name's creation came… piles of gravel on the school grounds. My friend and I loved climbing on those piles of gravel, searching for the colorful pebbles mixed in. Then the piles of gravel gradually diminished, and new buildings were erected. The most beautiful was Building D, affectionately known as the White House. It was white. It was for the administrative block. The first floor housed the Principal's office, and the upper floors contained various departments. My father worked on the third floor. Perhaps that's why I liked the White House so much. I was so proud to point it out to my friends that my father worked there.

The building has changed color now, and I work on the first floor.

***

I remember an old man used to sit by the side gate of my school. Some teachers and students would give him a few hundred dong coins as a gift. I used to play with him every afternoon. I grew up a little, and I would just ride my bike past instead of running to play like I used to. Then one day, I no longer saw him. And today, I think about that day.

***

On the campus of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, there are familiar and unfamiliar faces, people we will meet again and those who belong to the past, places we walk through every day that have witnessed stories of our growth over the years.

On the grounds of the Faculty of Humanities this season, there's a magnolia tree with vibrant white blossoms, but the branch that reached the window of building G didn't have a single flower in bloom. For those who love the scent of magnolias so much: even a torn piece of a magnolia leaf has a slightly pungent, refreshing fragrance. Oh, that's not good, the low canopy of the magnolia tree might lose all its leaves.

***

I'm in the present autumn, gazing at a resting spot in the schoolyard. The scent of milkweed flowers has been present since mid-afternoon.