These three poems trace
an arc of connection between Vietnam and Greece moving from distant, almost
mythical exchange in "Silk". History dances through trade and
imagination, to the deeply human story in "The Man Who Chose a
Homeland", identity, love, and belonging transcend origin. The final poem,
"We Rise in Meeting" turns gently toward the present, affirming a
living connection formed by openness, trust, and shared becoming. Together,
they reflect a journey from indirect encounter to chosen kinship, and finally,
to a hopeful, conscious meeting of worlds.
Silk
no ship bore a Greek name
into the mouths of Mekong tides
and then silk arrived
as soft as rumour
Funan glittered
in foreign memory
gems lifted like fragments of sunrise
into distant hands
they never touched
not truly
only through roads and oceans,
through spices and bird’s nests
through wood painted with soft rain
a city is called
Cattigara
half-myth, half-map
drawn in ink
by those who love nations
history sometimes
is a meeting
without footsteps
The Man Who Chose a
Homeland
he did not cross ancient
trade route
only a line of war
a Greek name fell from
him
like an old coat
he stood and reborn
as Nguyễn Văn Lập
a new identity, a new
loyalty
he learned the language of earth
mud, fire, resistance
love found him there
between gunpowder and rice fields
a woman’s voice
taught him how to stay
medals came later
metal for a lcourage
but the truest honour
was belonging
some men inherit a
country
some men choose one
We Rise in Meeting
we rise from distant
shores
embracing hope in our hands
time opens
and we walk into it
with open hearts
the loving paths beneath
us
woven with silk and sun
with voices learning each other
we build in this moment
connection
understanding
a growing trust
two worlds
now in gentle conversation
forming something new
We are here
beginning
becoming
together
Author’s Bionote:
*Võ Thị Như Mai is a
Vietnamese poet, translator, editor, critic, and Senior Teacher based in Perth,
Western Australia, whose work spans more than two decades of bilingual writing
and cultural advocacy. She holds a Master of Education and a Master of
Literature from Edith Cowan University, Western Australia. She is the author of
five poetry collections and three children’s books published in Vietnam and
Australia, and has led over ten internationally published bilingual translation
projects introducing Vietnamese poets to global audiences. Her writing explores
themes of belonging, memory, heritage, and the quiet beauty of everyday life,
blending Vietnamese imagery with a universal emotional resonance. An active
member of the Ho Chi Minh City Writers’ Association and the Perth Poetry Club,
she is also a literary curator for the Poetry Reading initiative by “The Writer
Monk”, and a frequent guest speaker at international poetry festivals. Beyond
literature, she delivers educational talks to young teachers, sharing insights
from her experience in both pedagogy and creative practice.
into the mouths of Mekong tides
and then silk arrived
as soft as rumour
in foreign memory
gems lifted like fragments of sunrise
into distant hands
not truly
only through roads and oceans,
through spices and bird’s nests
through wood painted with soft rain
half-myth, half-map
drawn in ink
by those who love nations
is a meeting
without footsteps
only a line of war
like an old coat
he stood and reborn
as Nguyễn Văn Lập
he learned the language of earth
mud, fire, resistance
between gunpowder and rice fields
a woman’s voice
taught him how to stay
metal for a lcourage
but the truest honour
was belonging
some men choose one
embracing hope in our hands
and we walk into it
with open hearts
woven with silk and sun
with voices learning each other
connection
understanding
a growing trust
now in gentle conversation
forming something new
beginning
becoming
together