A Lonely American

April 30, reading 'A lonely American' Viet Nguyen HOUSTON, Texas (NV) - In April, reading "A lonely American" by writer Thanh Thuong Hoang makes me recall the lost time, from 1966 to 1968 when I was young and practiced writing like my schoolmates from Chu Van An high school as The Huy, Hai Hau. Occasionally I wrote some articles for Chinh Luan, the largest daily newspaper in Saigon, where Thanh Thuong Hoang, its journalist, was famous. At that time, he was general secretary of the...
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April 30, reading 'A lonely American' Viet Nguyen HOUSTON, Texas (NV) - In April, reading "A lonely American" by writer Thanh Thuong Hoang makes me recall the lost time, from 1966 to 1968 when I was young and practiced writing like my schoolmates from Chu Van An high school as The Huy, Hai Hau. Occasionally I wrote some articles for Chinh Luan, the largest daily newspaper in Saigon, where Thanh Thuong Hoang, its journalist, was famous. At that time, he was general secretary of the Journalist Union and chairman of Press Village in Thu Duc.Thanh Thuong Hoang, a native of Nghe An with me, has been writing since 1954 when Geneva Accords divided the country in two. "A Lonely American", the story written in the political and cultural context of American era in Vietnam in the early 1970s seems the next of the "Quiet American" by Graham Greene, the British writer, written in 1955 with the context when the American entered Vietnam to push French colonists away. Graham Greene predicted that the Vietnam War with the United States would play a major role after the French."Quiet American" is about the triangle love among Alden Pyle - U.S. government official, Thomas Fowler - British journalist, and Phuong. 'Phuong' is the name of flower blossoming in summer. 'Phuong' is a gentle nostalgia in "Farewell Night in Hanoi" written in 1954 by Mai Thao. 'Phuong' is a dream of the pilots in "Life of Pilots" written in 1959 by Toan Phong Nguyen Xuan Vinh. In "A Lonely American", Ngoc Lan is the main character. Ngoc Lan had a love affair with John Wagner, who came to serve Vietnam during the war. Ngoc Lan is "name of the flower with its thin petals and gentle fragrance", and "offering flowers to Buddha, sorrow will dissolve" as the lyrics of Pham Duy's song. "Even withered, the flower still emitted its fragrance" made John smile when he thought of his Vietnamese girlfriend."A Lonely American" reminds me of Saigon; a Saigon full of memories of my teenage days, even though I have been away from Saigon for more than 40 years. A Saigon with two seasons - rainy and sunny; a Saigon with beautiful streets filled with quiet trees. My Saigon, through Thanh Thuong Hoang's beautiful text, was seen by John Wagner from the office on the third floor of the building: "Saigon was in the middle of the rainy season, Saigon was crowded, Saigon was busy when viewing above, the Saigonese still lived during the rampant war that existed everywhere, a quiet Saigon had a peaceful atmosphere being broken by the sound of jet fighters flying in the sky leaving white streaks of smoke that tarnished the clear sky." A Saigon with "sunset, nightfall, along the river side the crowd enjoyed a cool air, the rich had a meal in restaurants by the river, and the poor sat on benches to enjoy casual food, watching children playing around." A Saigon made John Wagner, an American who just came to Vietnam where in his mind it was a country of war, surprised: "Saigon is like a peaceful city without war," "a war has killed the youth's dreams."Thanh Thuong Hoang, a famous journalist with his gentle and sentimental expression, depicted Ngoc Lan and John Wagner, two Vietnamese-American symbolic characters of the cultural conflict during the Vietnam War.Ngoc Lan, John Wagner's clerk, "her pretty small face with bright eyes showed melancholy that makes John remember old memories," "Ngoc Lan is charming with her black hair flowing down her slender back created a charming oriental beauty; with such beautiful hair she could make the whole army stumble as described in Chinese folklore."John loves "Ngoc Lan, a quiet woman, who worked as a clerk during the day, as a student of University of Literature in the evening. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Lan, 20 years old, born in Hanoi, moved to the South in 1954, graduated from high school, fluency in English, a high school teacher, rarely talked to her colleagues even with John. "