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Starting a new Life
Truong Ngan Ha
An Experience Never to Forget
Hong Hieu&Anh Nguyen
Mirror Mirror
Hong Anh Nguyen
My Father
Trung Le
The Moon Festival
Chuong Pham
High Flying
Maverick
To The Mothers..
Bui Thien Tien
The Goose Story
Nhi Ho
On My Honour..
To Quyen Hoang (Sydney)
Start
A New Life
by Truong Ngân Hà
As Thanh stepped into the small classroom full of students, she
felt her heart start to be, at fast. All of the twenty odd pairs of eyes
turned to look at her, expressionless.
"Ah, class, I would like you to welcome our new student, Thanh
Ly. Come in here Thanh. Take a seat." The teacher sounded nice enough,
as she led the new girl to a sent in the middle row. Thanh nervously sat
down on the edge of her seat, feeling the curious gazes of the students
behind her.
The Vice Principal smiled and left her there in the teacher's
care for the rest of the morning lesson.
During recess, Thanh was shown to her locker and all her new
classmates came up to introduce themselves. They're all immigrants, just
like me. There aren't any Australians here, not even the teachers,
she thought. In fact, most of the others are Asians. She couldn't
help thinking back to Vietnam, her dear beloved homeland:
The small breeze rustled the thick leaves of the coconut palms above her. It was during lunch hour, and Thanh had come home from school for lunch. The rays of the midday sun had make her feel hot and third after running all the way from the edge of the village with her school friends. Hurriedly scoffing down her single bowl of rice and some coconut juice from the palms in the backyard, Thanh bid farewell to her mother and made her way back to school for another lesson in class.
As Thanh was about to close her locker door, a red-haired boy
she had never seen before come up and slammed the locker before her.
"So, you're the new one huh?" He sounded tough and jeering.
"Yes, I'm the new one," Thanh answered quietly, feeling very intimidated
by the boy's unwelcoming manner. "Another bloody Asian to add to
this stupid school!. Aren't there enough already?" he sneered bitterly.
Around her, Thanh's new friends, who were loud and happy before,
had suddenly silenced themselves, either eyeing the new girl or the red-haired
boy, Simon, and his mates. Thanh did not say anything , nor did she look
at Simon straight in the eye. Instead, she gazed down, her eyes focusing
on a little piece of rubbish below on the floor.
Feeling happy that they had made the new girl very uncomfortable,
Simon and his pals walked off laughing and joking together.
"Don't worry about him. He's just a bully trying to get
attention." said Shan, one of the girls Thanh had just met. Yes,
just a bully, Thanh thought. Just like the communists back in Vietnam,
only a little less cruel. She could remember the events so well.
so clearly. even though, at that time, Thanh was only a little girl of
5 or 6.
In the middle of the night, while Thanh and her other sisters
were asleep in one of the little rooms in their little hut, men armed with
guns rapped loudly on the door and came charging in. In just a few minutes,
the communists had gone, as quickly as they had come, but this time dragged
along her dear father with them.
Thanh and her eldest sister, who were light sleepers, had woken
up during the seizing of her Dad and had seen it all. They saw how
her mother begged the communists not to take her husband away. They
saw how their father had pleaded for the communists not to hurt his wife
and children. They saw the way the communists just laughed at the
idea, and kicked their mother thoughtlessly out of the way. They
saw the way that their mother had cried as the VCs (Viet Congs) took her
husband away, maybe forever, and they had felt the hurt and pain that their
mother had felt at that time, the pain of losing a loved one. Thanh
and Huong (her sister) had seen everything but could do nothing, except
to silently hide behind the thatched door, paralysed by their fear of the
VCs, until they were gone.
Thanh and her sister had quietly stepped out of their room, careful
not to wake their other sisters, who were really only little infants and
slept soundly through everything, and they had tried ta comfort their weeping
mother. The poor woman just hugged her two daughters, hanging on
to them for dear life, as if there was no other support to hold her up.
The three of them just sat there on the dirt floor and cried until they
fell asleep, just before the break of dawn.
On the second day at her new school, Thanh was hassled by Simon
and his mates again. The same insults and racist comments were thrown
to Thanh and her new friends from that day on, because they did not defend
themselves against the bullies.
Weeks passed, and Simon and his followers kept up what they did
best, which was to throw harsh comments at the other quiet students at
school during recess and lunch, and still, the victim did not fight back.
Then one day, Thanh couldn't stand it any more. She had
to stop all this discrimination. "Shut up!" she yelled at Simon.
"What do you mean, 'we don't belong here' ? That we're just 'bloody
Asians' ? This isn't your country either. Everyone has a right
to live here. Only people like you, who are so racist don't belong
here, or anywhere else at all!"
Simon was so taken aback by this sudden outburst from Thanh,
who was usually so quiet, that he just stood there with his mouth open,
totally silent without a single remark for the first time.
Seeing their chance, Thanh's friends all fought back at Simon
and his mates. They somehow did not throw back all the insults that
the bullies had given them, which was the easiest thing they could have
done, but instead somehow proved to the boys that they really were worthwhile
to the world.
The next day, Thanh came to school and saw Simon with one of
his friends, sitting on a rock by the basketball courts" looking down on
the asphalt as if there was something interesting there. He'd better
stop being so racist or soon he'll have no friends left at all, she thought
to herself.
At recess, Thanh walked outside and heard
excited talk among her friends about the first excursion for the year to
the city the following week. Everyone lived at least an hour's drive
from the heart of Melbourne, so a trip to the city was a pretty interesting
thing to talk about, and soon, Thanh and her friends were totally engrossed
in their conversation.
"Who wants to go to the stupid city anyway? I can go anytime
I want and have a cooler time without you Nips," came Simon's voice that
suddenly interrupted their excited talk.
"Why are you going then, huh?" asked Thanh. She was starting
to get very annoyed at his major big ego, and his ongoing racist comments.
" 'Cause, it's better than going to school, isn't it?"
"But we're supposed to do some research while we're there, remember?
And doesn't that mean that you have to go with us?"
"Who cares? I can always bludge. You squares can do all the work."
Thanh turned back to her friends and started talking again, so
Simon walked off dribbling a basketball towards the courts.
The day of the outing finally came and at a quarter to 9, everyone
was there, ready and waiting, all except for Simon. Mrs. Shallop,
the teacher, was getting annoyed. "I remember telling everyone to be here
on time," she said to herself crossly.
Finally, Simon strolled into the school quadrangle and grinned.
"OK! Let's go. What are we waiting for?"
"You!" Everyone in the class yelled.
"Maybe next time you can come here on time for once, Simon."
Mrs. Shallop exclaimed impatiently, as the class set off on their
excursion.
The trip to the city by train was spent looking out the window
into the backyards of the houses along the railway line. Fifty minutes
later, the class arrived at Museum Station and went to the Planetarium
to do their research assignments on aspects of Astronomy.
The class went window shopping in Daimaru, and when it was time
for lunch, the majority of the class agreed on Macca's. The restaurant,
on Swanston St, was almost full, so Mrs. Shallop led her class up towards
the second floor to find seats. Thanh and two others went on to the
third floor, for there were no seats left for them. When Simon and a few
of his mates had bought their big lunches, they made their way to the third
floor also" and sat a little further away from the girls.
A little while later, Simon went off somewhere, and Thanh excused
herself to go to the toilet. One of the other teachers, Mr. Kosach, went
up to the third floor to call the others, for it was time to go on the
rest of their trip to see the Shrine of Remembrance.
As the teachers thought that everyone had
come down, they led the way to the Botanical Gardens towards the Shrine.
By the end of their all-round tour, the class had reached South Gate and
went across the bridge to Flinders St. Station. It was roll call time as
the class waited for the train to come.
The list went on: "Michael?" "Here!" "Vaarsha?" "Present!" "Fuad?"
"yo!" "Hai Thong?" "Yeah!" "Thanh?" No answer. "Thanh?" Still there came
no reply. "Where's Thanh?" Mrs. Shallop asked. "Oh my God, where is Thanh?"
And where's Simon?" The class became loud as the curiosity of the where-abouts
of Thanh and Simon swept over them.
As no-one noticed that Thanh and Simon had
become lost until the class had reached Flinders St Station, the teachers
had to divide the class into groups to look for the two of them, and agreed
to meet again at half past 2 to board the train.
Looking for Thanh and Simon was not easy, especially in a big
city like
Melbourne. At 2:30, the class was gathered around down at the
platform again. Still, Thanh and Simon were nowhere to be found and
the class was going to be late getting home.
As there were four teachers on that excursion, two of them took
the class home while Mr Kosach and Mrs Shallop continued on their search
for the two students.
Mr Kosach stayed down at the platform to anxiously await for
either the students of his fellow teacher, just in case Thanh or Simon
came down. He only hoped they would come very soon.
* * * * * * * * * *
Simon sauntered up to the 3rd of floor of Maccas', and looked
around him, searching the bright room for his mates. They, of course, were
nowhere to be found. At the same moment, Thanh turned the corner from the
ladies room and both their eyes met.
"So where is everyone? Did you scare them off?" Simon asked.
"I think it was you who did the chasing." Thanh replied.
Ok, so everyone's gone without us. Perfect, I'm stuck with my mortal
enemy who may devour me in this restaurant within 2 seconds without anyone
knowing, Thanh thought.
As if he knew what Thanh was thinking, Simon cried aloud, " Great!
Now I'm stuck with you, a 'ching chong', of all people. Anyway, quit
the grudging. Let's get out of here."
The two students walked out and stood there, waiting for any
rescuers that might suddenly find them in front of McDonald.
"That's it! I'm not waiting around any more. If you're
smart enough, then come back to Flinders with me." Simon had lost
his patience, and strode across the road without looking out for the traffic.
Just then, the blare of horns startled Simon out of his foolish
attempt to rescue himself, but he ran on towards the middle of the road
where the tramstop was and waited impatiently for Thanh to follow after
the cars had stopped at the traffic lights.
"Are you crazy?" was Thanh's first remark, as she joined Simon
in the middle of the road. They were both waiting for the cars on the other
side of road to stop so that they could cross.
When the cars finally did slow down to a stop, Simon rushed ahead,
just as a tram was coming straight towards him, half a metre away.
He's gonna get run over by that tram, Thanh thought in terror. Oh
no! He's going to get run over! I can't bear to see anyone else injured
even if it's only Simon. I've seen enough pain and suffering from
the war in Vietnam. Another fearful memory flashed through her mind
as she remembered the day she first saw the dangerous planes that dropped
bombs and took the life of many Vietnamese people.
Thanh was on her way to the rice paddies one midday, bringing
lunch to her uncle in the fields. It was a beautiful day. The warm rays
of the sun were shining on her back and soft sound of the wind rustling
in the bamboos were in her ears. She knew her young uncle would be happy
to see her when she brought him lunch from home. Even though it was only
two small bowls of rice and a few dried pieces of fish, he would gulp it
down gratefully and tell her stories while he rested under the big coconut
palm after lunch.
But even before she could reach her uncle, a strong gust of wind
blew dust and dirt in her eyes, followed by the deafening sound of the
fighter bombers that soared in the clear blue sky letting out trails of
white smoke after it. Then suddenly, the bomber swooped down fast and low,
and dropped a bomb onto the many rice paddies on the land before it zoomed
off into the distance. As the bomb hit the ground, a thundering noise followed
after the blow that caused Thanh and many others to fall to the ground.
Strangling smoke filled the air and no-one could breathe. Thanh's
basket of food had fallen to the ground, so she picked it up and struggled
to fight the smoke while she stumbled to find her way to her uncle in the
paddy.
The smoke had cleared, and Thanh was able to see her path again,
but when she saw the body of her uncle lying motionless on the dirt, she
wished that she had not regained her sight. "Uncle! Uncle!" Thanh ran to
his side and shook him with all her might, but still he lay there not hearing
a word she said and not feeling her violent shake, for he was dead. The
force of the bomb as it exploded had taken her dear uncle's life along
with many others', and Thanh knew she could do nothing to help.
Now the tram was only a few centimetre away from Simon, and Thanh
knew that this was her last chance to help someone, even though he was
not nice to her. She really didn't have that much time to think so
she reached for his left arm and, with all her strength, yanked him backwards
where he would be safe. The tram made a few dings loudly and the
conductor yelled at them for being silly, but soon left them and kept going.
"What'd you do that for?!" Simon was angry at Thanh for pulling
him backwards, so that he nearly fell down.
"Well, I should've left you so that you could get run over by
that tram then!" Talk about ungrateful!. Thanh thought.
"Well," Simon hesitated, unable to find something to defend himself
with, "You didn't have to make me practically fall flat on me face!"
"So are you saying that you would rather have been run over
by a tram?" Thanh replied almost sarcastically, with impatience in her
voice, though no one could blame her.
Now Simon was speechless. He turned around and walked across
the road, this time careful about the traffic, after having been nearly
run over twice, with Thanh reluctantly following behind.
Once Thanh and Simon got to Flinders St station, they realised
that they could not go through, because Mrs. Shallop held the group travel
card, and with what little money they had left after spending it all on
food and other things from Daimaru, could not afford a return ticket back
home to Noble Park.
"Great! Now I'm stuck here with you for the rest of my
life because we can't get home!" cried Simon.
"Well, it's not like I want to spend the rest of the day with
an ungrateful racist pig like you!" Thanh replied indignantly.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, Simon spotted Mrs. Shallop
looking very worried, outside the station, and they both ran up to her.
"There you two are! Where were you? I was about to call for
a search party!"
"It's a long story!" Thanh and Simon said in unison, glaring
at each other. "Maybe we'll tell you on the train." Simon added,
and the three made their way down to the platform to meet Mr. Kosach and
wait for the next train.
"Hey, thanks Thanh," Simon mumbled when the four people finally
got on the train.
"For what?" Thanh pretended not to know what he was talking about.
"You know, for helping me when I nearly got ran over by a tram."
"That's OK. As long as you don't make me do it again."
"Deal! But on one condition. That is, you've got to keep
this a secret. I don't want everyone to know that I was practically
ran over by a tram, and then saved by you, of all the people", he smiled
as he said so.
"Maybe I'll consider it." It was a kind of Thanh's way
of saying that she did accept, but just not saying so. They smiled
at each other, knowing that another war between them had just ended.
Thanh stared out the train window, feeling tired, but happy.
Maybe some day there will be real peace in Vietnam, just like there's peace
here for me and everyone else around me now, Thanh thought, as the train
whizzed by the landscape to reach its destination.
Coming to your cinemas soon...
AN
EXPERIENCE NEVER TO FORGET
A True Story
Starring: Mary Nguyen and the Nguyen family!
Guest Starring: Mary’s Grandmother and the dedicated Taxi drivers
that took us all over the country!!
On the 28th of January 1997, a plane at Tullamarine
airport would fly into the air with the whole Nguyen family on board.
We were headed for a faraway country called Vietnam, a place that many
of you would call home.
For my sisters and I it was the first time
to visit the country where we are all really from. I felt quite weird
because I say I am Vietnamese and I’m from Vietnam, yet I had never seen
or really experienced the culture before.
The night before we were meant to be leaving was
a bad night for me. I couldn’t get to sleep due to both excitement
and I guess nervousness. Eventually I did fall asleep and practically
bounced out of bed the next morning! Everyone was rushing around
the house gathering up the last bits of luggage.
This particular morning the sun was up and shining,
the air was crisp and fresh, and everything felt so "alive"! I took
a few moments to reflect, seeing as this was probably my last summer morning
in Australia for another three weeks. I was overwhelmed by all of
the natural beauty that was just around my home.
As I took my last look around the house, it struck me that there really
wasn’t a place like home. I realized that I really loved my home
and its surroundings, and although at many times I’d rather be away from
it, home will always be within the top few on my list of desirable destinations.
Yet hours later when we were all at the airport
I still couldn’t believe that we were really going to Vietnam, the place
that I used to imagine about, the only difference now was that I was going
to actually experience the country myself.
The plane ride was really cool! You get free
peanuts, mini-cokes and you can beep the flight attendants until they get
really mad!! But of course being the extra good girl I am, I didn’t
do that...well maybe only once!! It was all pretty normal and stuff,
except for the toilet. The flush was powerful enough to suck you
through.
We didn’t stop over at any places because
it was a straight flight from Melbourne to Saigon.
The first highlight was arriving at the airport in
Vietnam.
After collecting our bags, we headed over to the X-ray machines where
they screen your bags. While standing there we realised how hot and
sticky things had suddenly gotten. At this point it was around 6:30
p.m., but unlike Australia at that time it was fairly dark outside.
We took a large van back to my Grandmother’s house. This was when
I got my first glimpse of the streets of Vietnam. With my head stuck
out the window, I saw bright lights, flashy signs and plenty of people.
The thing that definitely stood out here was the traffic. It
was really UNBELIEVABLE!!! I couldn’t believe the amount of motorcycles,
cars and bikes on the same road. Sure, I had always imagined what
it would be like with no traffic lights, but this was the real thing!!!
We arrived at my Grandma’s place all in one piece,
and there we were faced with the painful episode of ‘The Relatives Meet
the Young Kids From Australia’.
With all the greetings, questions, hugging, kissing, crying and not
to mention the cheek-pinching, us kids didn’t really have much time to
actually sit down and relax.
The remainder of that night and the following few days are now just
a blur to me now. I only remember feeling tired and a little moody.
Ahh, the wonderful mixture of jet lag and homesickness huh??!!
I won’t give you an extremely detailed account of
our whole holiday but I will generally tell you what we did....
After arriving in Saigon, we stayed there for a
whole week, and what a week it was!! The worst was homesickness and
then came cravings. My sisters and I would sometimes sit down and
hold "The Craving Hour". It’s pretty self-explanatory. Suddenly
things like pizza, McDonald’s and plain junk food had become so beautiful
and sacred!!
We then traveled by car all the way to Nha Trang.
After staying a night there we were off to Tuy Hoa to visit all of my Dad’s
family. We stayed a night in Tuy Hoa and again we were off to Phu
Thanh, and from there we went to visit family in Nha Que (the country side),
but only for the day. It was a very loooong day!!
After we came back from there we traveled back to
Nha Trang where we had the best sleep we had had for days!
We stayed the remainder of the week in Nha Trang
before going back to noisy and dusty Saigon.
Nha Trang was a really nice place where we went to the beaches.
However, the waves were too big and the water was too cold for us to go
swimming. Bummer! But never fear, the fun here was being able
to hear yourself think and breathe some fresh air! It was really
peaceful in Nha Trang and the roads weren’t as busy as Saigon’s, so it
was alright to walk outside on the roads.
After returning from Nha Trang we stayed in Saigon
for about three days or so and then we were off to truly enjoy the beaches
at Vung Tau!
This was my favourite place of all. Vung Tau’s this little place
on the coast where the beach was just down the road. I loved it here!
It was so quiet, peaceful and it had this permanent sea breeze which was
such a great change from the bustling city of Saigon.
One night my family and I, and the taxi driver
of course, went cruising around the streets of Vung Tau in our van.
It was a beautiful, cool night and the stars were out. I felt like
we were a million miles away from the "real" world with no worries or anything.
It was ultra cool. We swam in the absolutely gorgeous beaches and
I even got to drive a jet ski!! Now that- was so ultimately WILD!
I guess coming back to Saigon brought me back down
to Earth. It was a shame that we only spent two days in Vung Tau,
but it was better than nothing.
That was our last and best trip out of Saigon during
our holiday. We stayed the rest of our time in Saigon.
Soon we were up to our three week mark in
Vietnam (We had been counting from the very first day!), and by now
we had all got into the routine of things. The only thing I couldn’t
stand was the rooster that crowed every morning at 5 o’clock in the morning!!!
I was so ready to strangle that thing, but that wouldn’t be a very scout-like
thing to do, would it??!
While staying in Saigon we did heaps of stuff.
We shopping, ate and ate!, went to the Dam Sen park as well as a really
nice place called Suoi Tien. Overall, Saigon and Vietnam was truly
a very interesting and great place to go, yet we couldn’t help but remember
our Australian home, food and oh yeah, of course, our scout buddies!!
Since the first week we had been praying for early
tickets home, and our prayers were answered when the airlines came up with
another four tickets to Melbourne, and what better four people to use those
tickets then my younger sisters and myself?!! We were jumping for
joy and quite close to crying tears of joy. Okay, so maybe I’m over
exaggerating things a little, but we were definitely very happy!
The day of our flight was the 18th of January at
5:45 p.m, and up until then time flew by very fast. My mum was to
stay another week in Vietnam before she flew back to Australia, and although
leaving her behind was sad, going back home was an exciting event for us
all.
The plane ride home was bliss, even though we all
slept for most of it. The most beautiful thing on the flight home
wasn’t about free peanuts and mini-cokes but when we look outside through
the window and saw that we were back home again, we were once again on
Australian soil.
To sum up our holiday, I can truthfully say that
I had fun, despite the millions of mosquito bites, noise, pollution and
humidity!
When people ask me what I thought of it all, I can easily say...
"It was alright.", and not really mean it. I may have let on
that it really was just alright but in actual fact it was more than just
alright, it was good, great, really great. Going to Vietnam really
opened my eyes about a lot of things, like how lucky we all really are.
There are people who live in a little shack with barely enough food to
feed the whole family. I mean we’re all really used to what we have
here and probably take it all for granted, and it shouldn’t take a trip
half way across the world or anywhere to make us appreciate what we have.
We should already be thankful for our family, friends, food and homes.
It should be an automatic thing, yet we all, including myself, forget sometimes
and need a little reminding.
So, I’m telling you all now, what we have is pure
heaven and more to a poor beggar on the streets, who lives in a tiny, dark
shack and uses a newspaper as a blanket. The newspaper that we probably
throw out as soon as we’ve flicked through it once or twice. I’m
not trying to make everyone feel guilty for living life or anything, it’s
because the poverty I saw and experienced in Vietnam is extremely sad.
Maybe you just don’t know it until you are faced with it or see it, but
really it shouldn’t take that much.
My first trip to Vietnam had its bad and good parts
but I assure you that it really was an experience never to forget.
I know Vietnam isn’t the best place you could go for holiday, but for
me it was a really beneficial thing. And I know Vietnam doesn’t sound
like the most fun thing to do during your school holidays, but its times
like these where you’ve just got to have a positive attitude. If
you can stay happy where ever you are that’s one of the best qualities
you can get.
I sure hope that all of you, if you already haven’t,
one day get a chance to visit Vietnam. After all, it is kind of like
our second if not first home, and without it we have no nationality, identity
or name.
Although I can point out the really bad parts of
my stay in Vietnam I’ll tell you that I really had a great time during
my holiday and one day wish to return there for another holiday...scout’s
honour!
Written By Mary Nguyen.
Mirror mirror,
on the wall,
who is the fairest one of all?
Is it the one
who ordered thousands of humans to be shot,
for they were all the ‘religious lot’?
Is it the one
who declared war because of money and land?
Was there a prize for the one who owned more dirt and sand?
Is it the one
who beat an innocent child for fun,
and only realized afterwards that it was their own son?
Is it the one
who laughed at another human
because of the colour of their face?
Is it the one
who was violent towards others who were a different race?
Is it the one
who thought that oil would be healthy and dumped it in our sea?
Is it the one
who thought it was right
and took the lives of people in our community?
Mirror mirror,
on the wall,
tell me,
who is the fairest one of them all??
Written By Mary Nguyen (Hong-Anh)
Written by Trung Le
A father's love is big as the biggest mountain
A mother's care is everlasting like a running stream
Respect your father and mother
So you can fulfill your role as a virtuous child
These four sentences are taught to us from when we are young
to let us know the care and love from both our parents is non-measureable
and it will last for eternity, in order for our parents to raise us they
had to face many hardships and difficulties and nothing in this world can
match their love for us. Since today is Father's Day, we would like to
express our gratitude towards our mum and dad and to also tell a short
story about the love a dad has towards his children.
I was very small when my family was still in Vietnam, my family
wasn't rich and my dad had to work day and night in order to support my
family, therefore he was rarely home. My dad had to deliver stuff here
and there, but whenever he'd come home he would always bring with him some
sort of gift for my brother and I. Even though the gifts weren't worth
a lot of money, but we knew that no matter how busy he was he would still
find time to buy us a gift, but the love he had for us was more precious
than anything else in this world and the best gift any child could have.
When I was younger I very mischievous and therefore my dad yelled
at me all the time, I hated him then because I didn't understand why he
had to yell at me for. Now that I've grown up I understood the reasons
why my dad yelled at me. It was because he wanted me to become a good person.
Once when my dad took me to a party at his friend's house, while
he was inside talking with his friends I was outside playing with other
children, I remember that night clearly, I remember I was climbing onto
this branch, my foot slipped, I fell to the floor and broke my wrist, I
remembered well the expression upon my dad's face when he saw me fall,
he ran out and carried me to the nearest hospital as quick as he could
and from the moment I entered to the time that I left the hospital my dad
was always by my side, on that night I remembered seeing my dad shed
a drop of tear, that was the first time I saw him cry and when I looked
into my dad's eyes I knew my dad cared for me very dearly. Dad I will always
be a good son and I will try my hardest to become a person of usefulness
to the family and to the community. On behalf of all our Scouts and Venturers
we would like to wish all our dads a joyful Father's day.
Once upon a time, there was a woodcutter whose name was Cuoi.
He was very poos and had to work hard to earn a living. One day on his
way home Cuoi saw a baby tiger sleeping in the bush. He picked up the young
tiger and carried it off. Soon he heard the roar of the mother tiger
looking for her
baby.
Cuoi became very frightened so he threw away the baby tiger and
hid himself. The baby tiger
had died from Cuoi's throw. When the tigress discovered her dead
baby she went to the riverbank, plucked some leaves off a certain tree
and chewed them. Then she placed them on the wound of the
young tiger. Much to Cuoi's surprise, the baby tiger sprang back
to life and they both ran off. Cuoi
could hardly believe what he had seen.
When the tigers had gone, Cuoi went down to the riverbank to
see what he could find. He found
a strange tree, which he took home and planted, in the front
yard. He named this tree cay da (fig tree). Cuoi told his wife to
respect and care for the tree and never to throw dirty water on it because
he knew
that it had the power to bring the dead back to life.
One day, when Cuoi's wife was busy doing housework, he came home
early. Forgetting what
her husband had told her about the tree she threw washwater over the
tree instead of fresh water. Immediately the fig tree raised itself
up and began to fly up to the sky. Cuoi held fast to its roots trying
to pull the fig tree back. Yet the more he pulled the tree, the
more it flew up to the sky. Only when it landed on the moon
did it come to rest. In the moonlight one can still see Cuoi's shadow
beneath the fig tree upon the moon. At the time of mid autumn when
the moonlight is at its height, children gather in the streets to chant:
"The full moonlight
A big fig tree
And Mr Cuoi clings to his dream
I'd like to ask you then
Why don't you join us again
The full moonlight
A big fig tree
And Mr Cuoi clings to his dream"
"Reel him in... Reel him in... Maverick!"
The loud noise woke me up and the first thing I realised was that two
Mig-29s had flown past me like a flash of light.
"Where the hell are you going, Maverick? Lock on the bandits."
The voice shouted over the radio and then I found myself in the cockpit
of the F-16 Fighting Falcon. I knew it was a F-16 because my right
hand was holding the flight control stick and the ejection handle was between
my legs. This is one of the special features to identify the differences
between the F-16 and other jet fighters.
"I've been hit. I'm taking damage"
The voice trembled in my helmet and I heard the panic in those words.
Suddenly, the panel in front of me lit up like the proverbial Christmas
tree together with its associated audio warnings. I moved my right
hand and accidentally touched the control stick, the F-16 responded by
rolling several times to the left. I was horrified and realising
I had just saved my own butt when a line of fire missed me from behind.
Carefully, I pulled the flight control stick into the position I used
to play computer games with a joystick. The G suits inflated as I
was turning a 5G force which displayed on the HUD (Head Up Display) in
front of me. About ten bunches of lights missed me again and at the
same time, the voice shouted:
"Check six! Check six! Damn it, Maverick!"
I turned around and saw a Mig-29 on my tail, firing gunshots towards
me. As in the game, I rolled my plane to the opposite side of the
incoming bullets and pulled up to the direction of the sun. The sun's
glare almost blinded me but also the "bandit" on my tail couldn't see either.
"Warning! Warning! Stall Warning!"
The computer warned me but I had no idea where the power unit was so
I tried to push the nose down. Everything happened to quickly and
I realised my plane was falling down from the sky. The aircraft was
out of control and I had a vague memory of what was happening and why I
was sitting in a F-16, fighting dog-fight with a Russian made Mig-29.
I had been playing the Strike Commander game and all the things that had
happened during the past five minutes were identical to that game.
The only difference was I myself controlling and participating in a real
air combat instead of the computer and its components.
"Maverick! Wake up and pull up!"
The voice shouted in my ears again and it worked this time. I
opened my eyes and saw the numbers on the altitude scale falling down rapidly.
Instinctively, I pulled the control stick as hard as I could but the altitude
kept falling: 6000ft, 5000ft, 4000ft.... At last the head went up
when I was about to hit the ground, leaving a trail of dust behind my tail.
"If I want to stay alive, I'd better do something", I thought.
From my 10 o'clock direction, I saw two black dots flying towards me
from above but did not know whether they were friends or foes.
"Sorry we're late for the party. Is there anything left for us?
Anyway, let's eat them up"
This time an excited voice said on the radio and I saw the Migs were
breaking up from the tail of the other F-16, fleeing away.
"Are you guys all right, Maverick and T.C. ?" The voice continued.
"Yes, I'm fine" I replied without knowing whom I was talking to.
One thing I was sure about was that the two aircrafts were also F-16s,
they were probably my friends.
"You'd better stay home and drive a bulldozer, Maverick." Someone
laughed on the radio and I guessed T.C. was the one who had said that.
"Don't worry, son. You'll have a better chance next time.
Now let's go home."
The voice told me over the radio and I guessed it was Hawk, the leader
of the squadron, as in the game. I was sweating when trying to build
the formation with the other three aircrafts. Now, I had the chance
to study the control panel in front of me and saw the autopilot button.
Without hesitation, I switched it on.
The F-16's computer did the landing job for me and I just had to step
out of the cockpit. The "Wildcat Base" on the front hangar startled
me and I had got the answer for my doubts.
"This is it," I thought, "I'm the rookie pilot in my Strike Commander
game. How could this possibly happen?"
I was trying to figure out a way of returning to my life and the Hawk
called me to his office. That worried me a bit but I came to see
him anyway because I didn't know whom I could turn to. Hawk said
that he wanted me to be on his wings for the following day mission and
sorties.
The night passed with anxious feeling in my mind but finally I went
to sleep. In my dream, I learnt all the knowledge about aviation,
air combat situations, survival in a dog-fight and most important was becoming
an ace of the sky.
The following morning, I had a strange feeling about myself when I
woke up. There was someone or something else inside and make me feel
stranger, more confident and courageous. It was the first time I
wasn't afraid of anything and also discovered the true person inside me.
At 10am, Hawk called me to his office and we went trough the flight
path the last time before taking off. It was a normal CAP (Combat
Air Patrol) that I usually played in the game but this time, there was
something special about it.
I walked to the busy airfield after putting on the pilot suit, the
helmet and the G suit from the changing room. I had a quick last
inspection, there were no suspicious things about the F-16. I climbed
to the cockpit, trapping myself to the ejection seat while the one piece
canopy was closing down on me, disconnecting myself and the world outside.
I started the engine instinctively as I had done it a thousand times and
then taxied it out to the runway. Hawk was waiting patiently for
me in a slightly armed F-16: two side-winder missiles on the wingtips.
He looked at me, putting his right thumb up as the signal and I nodded.
We kicked in the "after burns" and scrambled towards the runway...
Suddenly, a bright light dazzled my eyes and someone was shaking my
whole body.
"Wake up, son. You're late for school!" I heard my mum's
voice and realised it was just a dream. Maybe I would go to bed early
that night to complete my story and a beautiful ending.
Maverick.
We just want to say
Thank you for all the tender loving care
You have given us
throughout the years
Thank you for putting up with us
when we were being a pain
Thank you for showing us
the right grom wrong
and teaching us to
live life the best way
You were always there
whenever we were in trouble
or needed someone.
We can always turn to you for help
You have bandaged our cuts
from small to big
Hoding us tight when we were sacred
telling us it be alright
when we had bad dreams
You taught us to talk
walk and many other things
that we will always
treasure in our heart
And especially teaching us
how to love and care for others
But most of all,
thank you so much
for giving us the unconditional love
that we so often take for granted.
Bui Thien Tien
The Goose Story
HoVan Nhi Suu Tam
Have you ever seen geese flying in a V formation? Have you ever thought of why they fly in this format?
Science has discovered the reason as to why they fly that way.
As each birds flap its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird immediately following. By flying in a V formation the whole flock aðs at least 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own.
People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going more quickly and easily because they are travelling on the thrust of one another.
When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels drag and resistance of trying to go it alone... and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird in front.
If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation with those who are headed the same way we are.
When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back in the wind and another goose flies points. It is sensible to take turns doing demanding jobs, with geese flying south, or with people!
Geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed... think about it!
What are we doing when we honk from behind?
Finally and this is important, when a goose gets sick or is wounded by gun shot and falls out formattion, two other goose fall out with the ailing goose and follow it down to lend help and protection. They stay with the fallen goose until it is able to fly, or until it dies, and only then do they launch out on their own or with another formation, to catch up to their group.
If we have the sense of a goose we can accomplish far more if we can work together!
by HOANG Diep To Quyen
"It's not what the world holds for you,
it's what you bring to it... "
Upon arriving back from a grand holiday in the USA and after having completed seventeen years of education at the beginning of nineteen ninety five, I was but a bud in the wake of bloom. Wielded by spritely ambition it was my intention to career myself through the management program, for which I had been accepted. I did not think then that anything could have stirred me from such worthy cause - I was wrong...
About three months before my sister, who was twelve, had joined the 2nd Bankstown Scout Troop. The Troop was a part of a Vietnamese Scout Group about forty minutes drive from our house. She would come home on Sunday mornings after their meetings full excitement and "talk us all crazy" about the mornings activities.
To me, Scouts were boys in khaki with cute caps who knocked on our front
door occasionally, selling lolly bags and asking for odd jobs. I had never
paid much heed, only searched my wallet for a couple of dollars in exchange
for favours when previously
asked. I never even realised that girls could be scouts so it was such
a surprise to me that my sister could be so excitable over such things.
Both my parents seemed to be most supportive of my sister's new found delight. I was rather indifferent.
It was during that Lunar New Year that I had my first real encounter
with the Scouts.
I can't recall exactly how or when but only that within a couple of
weeks of that new year, responding to the Troop's plea for a female
leader I found myself uniformed on a Sunday morning attending parade
singing the national anthem. When I first joined it was only with the intention
of chaperoning my baby sister until she outgrew Scouting. I did not know
then, that the commitment was to be life long - that I would teach and
be
taught some of the most invaluable lessons in life.
For one who had been a creature of comfort all her life, my first camping experience at Arcadia, sleeping in a tent, cold showers, cooking on open fires, was never going to be easy. It may have been the enthusiasm that never wavered, amongst twelve young Scouts that lifted my spirits on that miserably cold, wet Easter weekend in Autumn. I saw in them an energy, a thirst to learn, a joy in achievement and a pleasure in just being together that was somehow contagious.
I recall with clarity the large sheet of blue tarpaulin strung, perhaps only a meter higher than their heads under which they started their fires, using damp twigs, ready to cook their meal. Twenty or so meters away in a warm Scout hall cubs sat before tables to a deliciously warm meal which had been prepared by their parents. The rain was relentless as a full moon, two gas lanterns and fluorescent rays escaping through the windows and wooden cracks of the Scout Hall became their only sources of light. It is a very romantic picture to paint, however not quite so romantic, was being there, hungry, cold, wet, watching your chicken nuggets sizzle in a pot of oil, spitting at you, as drops of rain intruded.
I watched, as their leader taught them how to cook rice equipped with the bare essentials. One is not to underestimate the significance of this achievement. If you have ever tried to cook rice before, you will know that it has everything to do with timing - the correct water to grain proportions, when to apply constant heat, when to removed from the heat - in our culture it is an artform to be mastered. I, who had used an electric rice cooker all my life, found myself truly awed. To this day rice has never tasted quite as good as it did that night!
Arcadia was to become a memory embed amongst those with the sincerest of affections for it was there that I realised that this, was a movement I wanted to be a part of...
Scouting transcends national, racial and cultural barriers. The movement is non-political. The Scout Laws are Laws that should guide the development of our teenagers towards being caring, considerate, courageous young adults. Adults who respect all human life and value the nature which nurtures our very existence.
The Scout section is for teenagers between the ages of ten and a half to fifteen and a half. The Scouts learn in a Patrol environment. There is a systematic Awards scheme that allocates badges for competencies achieved in a broad range of areas from first aid and construction to such things as navigation and environment. All these challenge the young individual and equip them with the basic survival skills that have been sacrificed in the technology explosion of remote control and dial-a-pizza. In a world where Mech Warrior reigns supreme, where Graffiti has become an artform, smoking - cool and the anorexic waif the pinnacle of beauty, Scouting provides an alternative.
Our Troop has only Vietnamese members although we exist as a part of and under the Scout Association of Australia. Allowing minority Scout Groups within Australian Scouting assists the successful integration of the second generation into the Australian way of life.
As a multicultural melting pot, Australians come from a diverse range of ethnic backgrounds. In the third millennia the world will experience not only globalisation of trade, commerce and technology, but also culture. That is to say, plurality of race and culture within "one nation" will be a reality. We must teach each other to accept one another's differences and embrace the diversity of our heritage. Coexistence is the key to national solidarity.
For the second generation of migrant it can be very difficult to combine the old ways with the new. The struggle is the old chestnut "identity crisis". Some find themselves stuck between a rock and a hard place, neither "Australian" enough nor "Vietnamese" enough to fit in anywhere. Those who cling to the old ways find themselves isolated. Those who quickly abandon it, often later regret. In my experience Scouting is a very effective environment in which these young adolescents may be gently guided towards finding a practicable balance for themselves in their new homeland.
Within our Group we try and maintain "traditional" celebrations like that of the Moon festival and Lunar New Year. Remembrance of these days is important in giving the Vietnamese Scouts a sense of where they have come from. And yet participation in activities such as the Scoutaroo, Area Camps, Patrol Leaders Courses, Scout Job week and the celebration of days like Baden Powell's Birthday allows the Scouts to interact with their other Australian Scouting brothers and sisters, assisting the healthy integration into the traditional Australian way of life.
As has been said Scouting is a non political movement. And yet
with upsurge in racism as a result of the Hanson debate, the Australian
Scout, Australia's only official Scouting magazine was faster to take a
position of condemnation than any politician. "Scouting has shown
that multiculturalism can and does work in Australia". Scouting is
all about standing together irrespective of race, creed and political orientation.
What better values could we hope for in the next generation than those
promoted by the Scout Law and Promise:
A Scout is trustworthy
A Scout is loyal
A Scout is helpful
A Scout is friendly
A Scout is cheerful
A Scout is considerate
A Scout is thrifty
A Scout is courageous
A Scout is respectful
A Scout cares for the environment
Perhaps it is true to say that millions of people world wide, Scout or not recognise the benefits of Scouting, however the problem confronting the at present is twofold - leaders and parents. Both because in a world where time is lacking it is very difficult to make the commitment that is required of you as a Scouter and Scouting Parent.
It is inevitable that as we grow older we become more practical in both our outlook and approach to life. Ideals that once defined our aspirations all too quickly dissipate as we join the ranks of the employed and assume the responsibilities of adulthood. It is very difficult when you are on a growth track working ten hour days, not to become myopic and self-focused. Whilst career oriented pursuits are necessary to sustain life, they do not define it. There must be a bigger picture.
That picture begins with a small stroke. Through Scouting I have discovered an inexplicable joy that has enriched my life. It has been said that ours is a world which has "achieved brilliance without conscience". I can only hope that with my small stroke I am bringing something towards making this world a place of both "brilliance and conscience".
It is with much pride that I identify myself as a Vietnamese Australian Scouter.
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