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Sabaydii,
Here is the continuation of a series ‘Coming home’ entitled ‘Meeting my old folks’
Hakphaang,
Kongkeo Saycocie
No sooner our vehicle took off
We passed by the old rusty iron bridge
Spanning the two sides of Thakek
Together
Down below and out to the
The water ran high up
Close to the bridge
No less
Before
My friends used to jump down this bridge
Making an impressive splash
While I myself just watched
Like the proverb that goes
Living by the river
Still buys fish
That is me
I couldn’t swim
Though I live by the river
Almost all of my life
In Muang Lao
This bridge
The river down below
Brought me more lasting memories
Fishing we were
Dad and me
Not a few times
We rowed a small boat
Pulling the fish net
As a fish as big as my young hand
Caught in its net
Memories after memories
Flushed in
As our pick-up rolled by
The places well-registered in my mind
The badminton court
I and my French buddy
Played competitively
Wat Kang[1]
Where I liked to get KhaoTomh[2]
Left behind from the monks’ bowls
The governor residence
Where I watched the boat race
At the finishing end
The soccer stadium
Where I watched my favorite team
College de Thakek[3] played
And finally
Ecole Charite[4]
Where they first spotted
My literary talent with the first prize
Thakek
It was hard to believe
Over 30 years had passed
Still very much stayed the same
Apart from the few buildings
Sprawling around the town
With my heart trembling
Our pick-up reached
The foot of Wat ChomThong[5]
My dad’s only brother’s house
Deep in my heart
I knew
How much my dad loved his old brother
Seeing him amounted to seeing my dad again
Slowly I opened the gate
Walked up to the house
Climbed up the staircase
And opened the door
My aunt was the first
To greet me
Though many years had gone by
She still recognized me
Maybe
I looked very much like my dad
Or maybe
She had an uncanny sense
Of what her husband’s folks was like
Then the most rewarding moment in
When my dad’s brother
Carrying his shaky body out to meet me
Though sick and tired
His eyes beamed with delight
Seeing his beloved brother in me
The brother he had not seen
Since the new regime took over
The brother who lost his life
Not long landing in
And the brother who epitomized
Honesty sincerity and devotion to family
With my hands together
And head bowed
I knelt down at his feet
And let my long held tears
Flowed down my cheeks
For I had not properly mourned my dad
Passing away in a strange land
While I was still stuck in
To an ideology
More and more alien to me
When I left my dad brother’s house
A new resolve settling in
This is a land of my ancestors
Never again
I will leave her
Like my dad
Though no more
Still very much
In the land he loved
In everything I saw
And so will I
For eons to come…
8.15.03
[1] The temple located at the center of the town. That is why it came to be called ‘Wat Kang’ as ‘Kang’ means ‘center’ or ‘middle’. This temple is only a few walks from my residence of three years at the post office.
[2] The steam rice wrapped in papaya leaves. It also contains boiled papaya.
[3] The middle high school.
The whole town, in fact, the whole province has only one middle high school. To
continue the education beyond that level, you have to go to
[4] The Catholic primary school famous for the quality education. I went to that school during my stay at Thakek. Most of those who went to College de Thakek were from this school. The schooldays are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday with Thursday and Sunday off. It was tough to get into that school for you have to pay a relatively high tuition fee.
[5] A temple perching on the top of the hill.