10 LUMEN | PROGRAMMES
for him ...’ ‘ Same thing happened to the house of ‘ fat ’ Hoa up-road and a part of the path to our neighborhood …’ said the neighbor , shaking his head , coughing . Uncle Ba could only remain silent . He said , ‘ Well , I hope he ’ ll get a wife there .’ ‘ Yea —.’ The neighbor stopped short . Suddenly , the man fell onto the ground , shaking and convulsing . His body contorted and jerked like a wild tiger with an arrow in its brain , ‘ Ugh !... Ugh !... Ugh !...’
‘ Ahn Bohn !’, Ba rushed beside , squatting and patting his neighbor . ‘ Hieu ! Doan !’ He shouted , while running over to the neighbor ’ s house , his slippers scurrying frantically against the ground as if trying to scrub it clean . In splitseconds , Ba was back with Hieu , to the sight of a drooling father , his gelatinous eyes rolled back lifeless . ‘ Dee gup gu !’ Declared Hieu , panting desperately . ‘ Malaria did not strike him ! Not malaria ! At all !’ ‘ Yes , do drive him to the Emergency room !’ said Ba as he quickly helped Hieu get his father up to the hammock in the room , while Doan ran to remove all the bundles of dien-diens from her husband ’ s moped and pulled it over to Ba ’ s house . After Bon was on the moped , the couple drove away to the hospital in no time , leaving all courtesies behind . Ba looked on as the little vehicle turned around the bend and disappeared .
Silence was with uncle Ba . He breathed slowly , turned around and rested his eyes on a piece of land afar , amidst the supposedlyseasonal flood with a few dry dirt patches slightly emerging from the silty though diluted water . It seemed that it was crumbling away , with each patch of dirt tumbling down the water , making a few audible crashes , for a while before coming to a halt , saving the rest for some time in the future when the next patches shall undergo the same fate .
Then , Ba looked up . Something caught his eye . He remembered clearly that the milling plant was abandoned a few months ago , yet there were darkish fumes approaching . However , it took him a few moments to realize how those were storm clouds , growling in the air . Then , he wondered : What did people like him do to deserve this wrath of God ...
... It was another twilight , for the Earth and for Ba . The day had not really begun , nor night ended ...
Commentary “ I wrote this piece under the title of ‘ Chang vang ’, which is Vietnamese for ‘ Twilight ’. This short story was inspired by what I ’ ve read regarding the impact of climate change on different aspects of a human community , and here I decided to set it within a Southern Vietnamese community . Many of my pieces , including this one , work under the principle of ‘ content dictates form ’, whereby the literary techniques I used were in service of conveying my intended ideas .
Regarding the concept of climate change , there are three ideas . First of all , I wanted to present the consequences of climate change on various areas of daily life . In the countryside of Southern Vietnam , for instance : agriculturewise , the nourishing floods which used to arrive regularly have become more irregular , and so the earth becomes less fertile , and the crops usually harvested during the flood seasons are fewer in amount and taste worse . Social-wise , climate change , exemplified by deforestation , also leads to dangerous land-slides that harm the living experience . Health-wise , the likelihood of being inflicted with tropical diseases , like malaria , increases . With all these ideas in mind , I created my characters , central or not , whose experiences provide context for these effects of climate change .
Speaking of characters , while their purpose is ( as explained ) tied to explaining to the audience the climate change consequences , I also want them to appear as real human beings . As such , influenced also by my personal desire to write literary pieces in English but in relation to a Vietnamese spirit , I ’ ve added sensory details as well as cultural elements that are endearing and special about the Southern Vietnamese farmers : the way they talk to one another , the way they think , their use of nicknames , their occupations , the tools / vehicles they use daily ,... Of these elements , the Vietnamese lines are an interesting dramatic device , whereby they are transcribed in a way that an English-speaking person can read them but may not understand , while a Vietnamese-speaking person cannot read them but might understand if the words are read out to them . As an English piece , the intended audience are English-speaking readers , as such the lines become a way for me to hide foreshadowing details — still , readers can try to get hints by reading the adjacent English dialogue lines .”
LEONG XIU YI
The wind ripples through the long grass outside the window .
A cool breeze shimmies the off-white lace curtains , rattling the pans hanging from the ceiling .
Jazz plays on the radio , the music flowing into the kitchen from the living room .
My hips sway to the beat , feet tapping the lyrics . My cats meow loudly from my feet , asking for food . Chop , chop , chop . Today ’ s meal was going to be great . I ’ d invited some friends over to share the feast , not wanting to waste the meat past its freshest state . The harvest this year was plenty , with enough for me to sell at the last farmers ’ market of the year in town next week and still last me through winter . Potatoes , carrots , capsicums , tomatoes and a variety of berries . With the vegetables sliced and diced , I dropped them into the already brewing meat stock that I had prepared the previous week . What great aroma ... A good use of bones that would otherwise go to waste .
I ’ d only picked up cooking formal meals the year before , when circumstances meant I had to move out of the city and take up a farm . Since , my skills have improved drastically , especially with the generous supply of crops and meat to practise and experiment with . I invested my last pay check on culinary equipment and an antique hob-top and cast-iron oven . I don ’ t regret the choice in the least , considering the hearty , satisfying meals I ’ ve had .
Now , with the stew broiling , I started up the main course . A good , seasoned braised thigh . I retrieved the marinated meat from the fridge , chuckling at the perfect covering of herbs and spices . Carefully , I wrapped the meat in cooking parchment and tightly tied the twine before placing the package into an iron pot . In the water and wine goes , then finally the lid .
Not too big of a flame ... a little more , a little ... perfect !
Humming to the saxophone melody , I wrapped up the dumpling appetisers . Spread , meat , wet , pinch . Spread , meat , wet , pinch . Every little dollop lovingly filled with a minced meat and scallion filling . It was a recipe my mother had taught me , but with my own slight modifications . Most of my dishes are made from scratch , since the nearest market or grocery store is an hour and a half away . But anyways , dumpling fillings and skin is a basic Asian household recipe . No need for pre-made
Dinh ’ s response to CAP : “ The Creative Arts Programme ( CAP ) was very insightful and consequential for me in many aspects . I can only imagine how much better it would have been if carried out in face to face interaction as it would allow the CAPers to learn more about one another , and CAPers can directly express their thoughts to the instructors as well . Nevertheless , the organising committee , comprising enthusiastic student volunteers and MOE teachers , were able to make CAP an unforgettable experience . It was an invaluable chance for me to learn about the craft of writing ( whether poetry , prose or plays ) and other art forms ( such as photography , filmmaking and drawing ) directly from people within the Singaporean art scene — people with first hand experiences — and listen to their professional feedback on our pieces as well . Simultaneously , it was an opportunity to engage with like-minded peers , who share surprisingly similar interests and can become valuable friends with whom you can share your writing and learn from - as such forming an encouraging writing community . “