​Kết quả

Hắn hối hả lên máy bay, bước từng bước nặng nề với hai cái túi xách to đùng. Nhét vội nhét vàng hai cái bao nhựa vào khoang hành lý trên đầu xong, hắn rơi tự do vào cái ghế bé xíu so với cái thân hình gồ ghề của hắn. Mặc cho cô nàng bên cạnh líu ríu nép mình vào nửa cái ghế kế bên, hắn chẳng thèm đến xỉa. Chẳng còn gì phải lo, hắn rút ngay tờ báo vừa mới lấy ở cửa lên máy bay, lật xoàng xạc qua từng trang, dường như chỉ đọc lướt qua mấy cái tít giật gân cho có. Lật qua, lật lại, xoàng xạc, xoàng xạc, thi thoảng lại rung đùi, thi thoảng lại hít mũi một cái rõ to. Máy bay cất cánh. Bữa trưa nhanh chóng được phục vụ. Từ Hồng kông đi Thượng Hải không cơm thì mì, làm gì có món nào khác. Cơm là chắc rồi. Phải hơn hai tiếng nữa mới đến Thượng Hải, đói bỏ sừ. Khay vừa đặt xuống, hắn chĩa ngay lấy cái nĩa nhựa, chớp lấy hộp cơm, hất cái nắp đậy ở trên ra. Cơm chiên! Hắn cũng không kịp nhìn xem có cái gì trong mớ cơm chiên đó nữa. Há miệng rõ to, hắn cắm cái nĩa vào một đầu hộp và cứ thế lua lia lịa từng mớ cơm một. Không quá một phút, hộp cơm hết sạch. Hắn hãy còn chép miệng thèm thuồng. Bao nhiêu đó cơm thì có bỏ bèn gì so với sức ăn của hắn chứ. Cô nàng bên cạnh chỉ biết mở to mắt nhìn, vẻ sợ sệt hiện rõ trên khuôn mặt hãy còn ngơ ngẩn, chưa kịp hoàn hồn sau cái cú lùa cơm 1 phút của hắn. Cô tự hỏi không biết hắn có kịp nhận ra mình đang ăn cơm chiên. Hắn có nhận ra hương vị trong trẻo của nắng trong từng sợi cà rốt? Hắn có nhấm nháp được hương vị dạt dào của gió trong từng hạt đậu xanh xanh? Và hắn có cảm nhận được những hạt sương tinh khôi trong từng hạt bắp non mơn mởn? Tại đây, trong giờ phút này, hắn không tồn tại. Khi ta vội vã lướt qua thời gian, không kịp dừng lại, không hề tỉnh thức để nhận thức từng hành động và suy nghĩ của mình, phải chăng ta đang cho phép cuộc sống của mình bị vô minh đánh cắp? #triếtlý #hiệntại #hạnhphúctỉnhthức #tồntại #cuộcsống #vôminh

On the plane, May 22, 2013 It’s 5pm when I board the flight from Hongkong heading to Saigon, Vietnam. After the hustle bustle of China, I find the flight quite unusual with just myself among empty seats. We pull out as scheduled but gotta wait another 20 minutes before getting a signal to take off. Obviously the morning storm in Hongkong has created quite a situation here with plenty of delayed flights patiently waiting in line. After a while, we find ourselves up in the air without any drama. 30 minutes after take-off, we suddenly get sucked into a turbulent area. You know the feeling when it gets all bumpy and rocky and sometimes you find yourself fallen…. At that very moment, all that you think can be controlled in this world turn meaningless. At that very moment, one learns that it is a fine line between life and death. Nothing, nothing is permanent…. What if the plane crashes?, I ask myself. What if I die today? Would I have any regrets? I have definitely lived and loved to the full extent. I have certainly made a lot of mistakes along the way. And surely I have hurt some people in this lifetime with my absolute ignorence. What has been done cannot be un-done. But how I live my life in the present does matter. The present will soon become the past and the future is one’s present. No regrets! At least I have been living in mindfulness. No worry about the past. No expectation for the future. It’s all about the present. It’s all about this very moment. As I take a deep breath, the captain informs us that we would get out of the turbulence in another minute. Sometimes that one minute defines who you are. One is all. I am the universe! #death #future #present #perspective #mindfulness #life #universe #past

Melaka river cruise – everyone talks about it on-line and off-line. It is a bit over-rated. You call a ferry that take you along the smelly Melaka river a river cruise? Well, you get to see grafitti on some houses along the river. The highlight, however, is seeing hundreds of globe drifters, the noisy Melaka night birds, travel back to their tree homes in families and groups. Family comes to mind upon the moody sunset. #globedrifters #mallaca #melaka #rivercruise

It was 8:00PM on a small lane way near Tameike-sanno station. After a fulfilling sashimi dinner at Kitokito, a small tucked-away restaurant in the same area, I decided to take a walk and get some fresh air. After all, the weather has been very accommodating for this tropical person. I spotted several men-in-black waiting in line in front of a vending machine. Well, there were buttons and thumbnail images but I could not seem to locate any products. Tokyo itself is overloaded with convenience. Every 100 meters I seem to find a convenient something, if not convenient stores then drink vending machines or cigarette vending machines. This vending machine, however, does not seem to fall into any of those categories. Imagination ran wild…. What could it be? Newspapers? Bit late for that. Condoms? Bit too outrageous for a skin-deep conservative society I guess. As I walked closer, the images became clearer. Noodle! A variety of noodle…. First you slot the money in; select which noodle you want; then get your receipt and change. There is a tiny noodle bar next door with a Japanese-size entrance where you can walk in, hand over the receipt at the counter and pick up your noodle. No words spoken. No interaction required. No mistakes possibly made. The noodle can stay silent as people immerse in their own world. I ask myself whether people are swallowing their past or chewing on their future because at this very moment, there is no present, no presence. You may as well replace that guy at the counter handing out bowls of noodle tonight with a black-suit robot. You never know! Where do we go from here? Is silence the answer to this solitary world of ours? #silent #world #present #perspective #presence #mindfulness #Tokyo #life

Pudong International Airport, May 22, 2013 Totally exhausted, I board the 11:00 Cathay Pacific flight heading home. It’s now 13:15 and I am still on the grounded plane without a distant idea when we will take off. That’s pretty common for any flights in and out of China. Always prepare for the worst! Today’s delay is not at all iritating to me. My time is spent reading the first few pages of a book that a China friend of mine gave me as a present last night, Lunyu by Confucius. I of course get right onto the first few pages, excited to learn more about the teachings of Confucius, the great philosopher and educator of ancient China. One sentence immediately catches my attention, “Never worry if others do not understand you. Worry if you don’t understand others!”. My mind travels right back to a conversation I have in Najing with 2 local friends when one asks me what I think about Chinese people. Having experienced numerous bad experiences in China, I rightfully reply, “I am not talking about you two, but most Chinese main-landers carry no manner.” Silence takes over the car as we move forward…. We discuss further about the lack of foundation in the Chinese educational system later that day but never go back to the “manner” topic. Sitting on the airplane now, reading Confucius’s teaching, I suddenly feel very ashamed of myself for judging others based on my personal background and up-bringing. How could I expect people to think, know, and act the way I do? How could I impose my culture upon the people of China? They surely irritate me to some extent and they definitely will irritate anyone else who have been so adapted to an orderly environment. However, if I am to think twice about this matter, how on earth could I blame them? You don’t know what you don’t know. When certain behaviors are widely accepted, you grow up being implanted with those concepts as normal standards. They obviously are ignorent of the fact that they do sometimes annoy the hell out of me…. And yet these great China friends of mine have done their best looking after me on this trip. Pieces of the same puzzle simply do not match. After all, it seems to be because of one’s perspective towards a matter…. My China friends know it all starts with education to change a society and they know it takes a few generations to do so. They do not know how, how long it takes and when it will happen. Yet they all live on with hope. For now, I tell myself to learn to understand them. “Never worry if others do not understand you. Worry if you do not understand others!” 不患人之不己知，患不知人也。 #confucius #understanding #china #perspective #life

Xi’an, May 14, 2013 I was totally thrilled to make this trip to Xi’an, the capital city in thirteen Chinese dynasties which in total lasted over 1100 years. This is where the much broadcasted Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses were found. These sculptures depict the armies of Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇), the first emperor of China. The figures, dating from 210BC, were discovered in 1974 by some local farmers in Lin Tong district, Xi’an, near the Mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huang. Such rich and worthy history! The first impression of Xi’an, however, was that of a dark, suffocating, care-slacking kind of feeling from the airport to the hotel. The airport itself was dark and gloomy, kinda like you are on your last life in a warrior computer game. It took us more than an hour from the airport to the Crowne Plaza Hotel, supposedly the landmark of the city as the the driver put it since it is the tallest building in Xi’an. Along the way, greyish redish run-down residential buildings line up in odd orders. The whole thing paints a saddened, tragic mood to the city skyline. I wondered if I was in the right city, the glorious ancient city of China; the past unseen, the future unknown, the present perplexing…. Xi’an reminds me of Cairo and Bucharest. Like Cairo, it’s a heritage city with thousands of years of history which can really make you stop, put aside all the earthly monkey thoughts to simply appreciate the glory of past civilizations. However, Cairo seems to be trapped in the glory of the past without any forward direction into the future while Xi’an marches forward at the light-year speed without a single nostalgic expression of the much admired by-gone era. Like Bucharest, Xi’an hosts some of the most amazing architectural structures with thousands of years of history, but one would never understand how these gorgeous masterpieces could be disgracefully placed amidst the skinny, miserable-looking, multi-storey residential boxes. The past and the present host an awkward relationship though they somehow learn to co-exist. Another day dawns upon Xi’an as I leave this city with mixed emotions of belonging to the past yet failing to fit into the now of this historical city. The future is unknown. All I know is that my future depends upon my mindful living in the present. Just like the ancient people of Xi’an created today’s amazing Xi’an for us to admire, from the bottom of my heart, I pray that the people of Xi’an shall be mindful of their present to help Xi’an live on as the cultural heartbeat of China. #china #mindfulness #perspective #xian

The Outdoor Zoo April 28 is just another summer day at Melaka zoo, except that it is a long weekend and people are eagerly taking time out to entertain themselves. To Leo the Lion, today sooner or later shall become yesterday. How much longer can one entertain oneself? It’s scorching hot. Leo lies motionless with half an eye open. One after another, couples and groups, walk past his cell. Some look without seeing. Some look just for the sake of looking. Some do not even bother. If at all more fascinating, some snap numerous photos just to post on facebook. Even worse, some shake their heads feeling all sorry for the trapped, old, worn-out lion being deprived of its basic animal rights. One thing is common and crystal clear. No one is here, now. All Leo can see are faces of anger, anxiety, misery, fear, loss, and confusion. “What a zoo out there!”, Leo thinks to himself. “It’s not a bad idea staying in-door, inside this peaceful island of mine”. #lion #philosophy #melaka #mallaca #zen #perspectives #life #zoo

Shanghai, May 12, 2013 Been to Shanghai numerous times before but coming from Tokyo does give it a different perspective altogether. The moment I stepped onto the China Eastern Airlines flight this morning, it was a completely different world; the big sloppy bags, the chaotic movements, the noises, the pushy encounters…. I often find myself vulnerable in such a settings. “When in Rome, do what the Romans do!”. So have we been taught by our ancestors. Gosh! Forgive me but I am dumb enough to never graduate from the pushy institution of China. My Chinese share of genes must be way weaker than the Vietnamese one. Chinese mainlanders never seem to be tired of being pushy, pushy to get off the flight, pushy to get ahead in the customs lines, pushy to get a good space at the conveyor belt, pushy to quickly get out of the airport…. Why the rush? Isn’t life worth appreciating? But hang on! Getting somewhere in the future seems to be all that matters now and it does get rewarded with a prize, instant happiness. Life for them is like a scratch card. You may get lucky today. If not, you just keep scratching till you pass out, without a distant idea why it has to be that miserable on earth…. It hurts to see money, status, and power take over the world. It hurts to see millions if not billions of souls lost in the search for impermanent, illusional gains. And though the teaching of ‘loving kindness’ could easily be comprehended, walking the whole nine yards can never be a mission accomplished. Keep walking, myself! #lovingkindness #happiness #shanghai #china #perspective #status #money #Tokyo #life #power

Thought about a dear friend while cruising Melaka river and hope he keeps living in mindfulness. Here’s to a friend who has been seeking himself for as long as I’ve known him. I’ve walked the endless roads To look for myself Only to have found a suffering garden Arising from seeds of misery… Sitting here this morning I have found myself In the embracing morning rays In the passing gusts of wind In the silent earth In the trembling raindrops In mindfulness In the nameless universe… #friend #melaka #mallaca #meditation #perspective #love #mindfulness

KLIA Airport, March 08, 2015 I spotted them as they looked a bit odd from the rest of the crowd. For a minute there, I thought they were a Vietnamese couple returning from holiday in KL. Probably their first trip out of the country as they looked a bit lost…. As they were checking in, I was called to the next counter. “Are you Vietnamese, sis?”, asked the lady suddenly. “Can you help me? I don’t know how to get to the plane”, continued she even before I could react. Oh well, this is not my first, so why not? “Sure”, I said. “My suitcase is overweight. Can you wait for me there?” After last night’ learning about the Islamic value of helping others from my Malay friend, my patience certainly does not run dry. “OK. Let’s go!” said she eagerly, all by herself as she approached me. “Oh so just you?” “My first trip back in the last three years, you know? Since I moved here with my Malaysian husband.” “Oh so you live here. It’s only a 1.5-hour flight. Why the wait for 3 years?” “My mother-in-law would not allow me to go back. Gotta fight hard this time, sis. Yet she would not allow me to take the 2 kids with me, one 2-year-old and one 4.5-month-old. Afraid I would not return, sis. That’s why!” Her story just got me intrigued. “Is there a reason why she should be afraid?” “Well, I found out after I moved here that my husband only enjoyed fishing for leisure and would not want to work. We have been supported by his mom for the last 3 years while I am raising 2 kids. First 2 years they gave me 200-300 to send back to my mom. This Chinese New Year there was none. I am so sick of this life, sis. No freedom. Totally dependent.” “Then why did you move here in the first place?” “The matching agent told me this guy had 3-4 properties, that marrying him and moving to KL from such a poor province like Can tho would change my life, that I would not have to worry about finance for the rest of my life.” “So how long are you gonna be back in Vietnam for?” “Back for good, sis. Back for good. Poor kids, but what else can I do?” Almost 20 years later since the “Marrying Taiwanese” movement in Vietnam with thousands of tear-filled stories on the media, am I really talking to another bride on a foreign land, still? Is it purely hope for a better life? Is it greed? Or is it simply the vast blue sky admired from the bottom of a well? Is it her to blame?

Dalat, February 22, 2014 Eyes of curiosity follow as I walk across sparkles of soft morning rays into the classroom. Somehow, Dalat manages to mesmerize this passionate visitor with its shadowy eyes of pride and its sobbing silence as the neverland of memories…. Have you ever felt eyes of a million souls softly land on your heart? As I seat myself down amongst these speech & hearing-impaired kids today, my heart sinks into a giant melting pot filled with unselfish love of a million lifetimes. Colors dance to a valse symphony as they brush rainbows of love onto innocent white canvases. Here, in 20 square meters of free spirit, space and time turn irrelevant…. Forced boundaries of race, posession, and fame slip through the velvet strokes as colors of hope twinkle on a galaxy of dreams. At times, I’ve wondered how one captures the dark side of a weep or the shadow of loneliness. Right here, right now, wondering all drifts away on a river of no return. Looking through glittering eyes of loving kindness, one learns how to paint happiness in shades of simplicity…. #shadow #paint #lovingkindness #happiness #loneliness #shade #color #perspective #weep #journey #love #life #kids #simplicity

Sân bay Kuala Lumpur, 08/03/2015 Hai vợ chồng đứng check-in. Anh chồng trông có vẻ lếch thếch. Cô vợ mặc đồ có vẻ quê quê. Chắc là lần đầu đi du lịch Mã lai…. Vừa bước tới quầy check-in kế bên, bỗng cô vợ quay qua hỏi “Chị người Việt hả?”. Chưa kịp phản ứng, cô lại vội vàng nói tiếp “Chị dẫn em ra máy bay nhe. Em hông biết đường đi.” Ừa thì giúp. Cũng đâu phải lần đầu…. Hai vợ chồng lúi húi moi đồ ra khỏi va li. “Quá ký chị ơi. Đứng ngay cửa chờ em nghe. Ngay chổ đó đó.” “Nhờ gì mà nói chuyện không nhẹ nhàng gì hết ta”, bụng thầm nghĩ. “Mà thôi. Giúp người phải giúp cho trót.” “Đi chị. 3 năm rồi lần đầu tiên mới được về đó.” “Ủa em về 1 mình à? Làm gì ở đây mà 3 năm mới được về?” “Em lấy chồng qua đây 3 năm. Năm nay làm dữ lắm má chồng mới cho về. Mà hông cho ẵm con về nữa chị, 1 đứa 2 tuổi, 1 đứa mới 4 tháng rưỡi. Sợ em về luôn đó chị.” “Sao mà lại sợ em về luôn?” “Thằng chồng em nó ham chơi. Hông biết làm ăn gì. Suốt ngày câu cá câu tôm. Đi làm công nhân bữa làm bữa nghỉ. Má nó nuôi không hà. Bởi vậy em đâu có tiền xài. Hồi mới qua còn cho hai ba trăm gởi về cho má. Tết năm nay hổng có đồng nào.” “Vậy sao hồi đầu em ưng làm chi?” “Em làm đào ở Cần thơ. Tụi nó mai mối nói thằng này nhà ba bốn căn. Qua đây làm vợ nó sau này có tiền xài. Khỏi phải làm lụng cho cực nữa. Ai mà biết chị.” “Rồi lần này em về thăm nhà bao lâu?” “Về luôn chị ơi. Chịu hết nổi rồi!” Tay quẹt vội vài giọt dài giọt ngắn. “Tội 2 đứa nhỏ. Hoàn cảnh mà biết làm sao?” Vẫn là cái chuyện cô dâu Việt trên đất khách. Gần 20 năm sau cái thời rầm rộ “lấy chồng Đài loan” với những câu chuyện cười ra nước mắt, vẫn còn đây một cô Thảo nhà ở Cần thơ bỏ con chạy trốn chồng. Trách ai?!?