A promise to return on the day the lotus blooms

This autumn, the wind no longer sweeps across the fields. Summer blazed with fiery light, marked by the lingering scent of lotus blossoms throughout the fields, along the pond banks, and over the lagoons that have now faded. Autumn has arrived, and the lotuses of the past season have withered, just as countless trees and grasses have shed their leaves for new ones. I sit, longing for the fields, recalling the vibrant bloom of lotus flowers, the cool fragrance rising from the vast lotus ponds of my homeland. And suddenly, my thoughts drift to the vision, the dream of the lotus, embodied in Long Thanh International Airport, like a lotus flower gradually unfolding, soon to blossom in all its splendor.

A visitor comes to admire and take photos with the lotus flowers at a garden tourism site in Binh Loc ward (Dong Nai province). Photo: Tran Danh

Dong Nai, my homeland, may not be known for vast lotus fields, nor can it rival the famous expanses of lotus blossoms at West Lake in Hanoi. Yet across this land, wherever one goes, each lotus season still brings a gentle fragrance carried on the wind. It is no dream, but a simple truth. What is truly precious is that from the image of that fragrant lotus, Dong Nai has now nurtured its own, blooming in the midst of endless forests, hillsides, fields, and gardens that once defined this land.

One day, when the Long Thanh lotus is in full bloom, its fragrance will spread across the nation and reach the world. Born from a dream, from the idea of a fragrant lotus, Long Thanh International Airport, the lotus dream is on its way to becoming reality, and that day is no longer far off. Just the thought of it brings joy and hope each morning as I wake, breathe in the open air, and live alongside that dream. Watching the project gradually take shape, my heart stirs with excitement for a radiant lotus blooming in the skies and soil of Dong Nai.

Once Long Thanh Airport is put into operation, all flight procedures are completed, and the plane takes off from the runway, you will be able to look down and see the airport as a lotus in full bloom between earth and sky, alongside the air traffic control tower rising steadily from the ground like a giant blooming blue lotus. At night, from a certain altitude, the Long Thanh Airport terminal appears like stylized lotus petals in the vast sky. One can also envision the entire terminal as a Lac bird from the ancient Vietnamese legend, with its brilliant colors just landing on this land, awakening the desire to take off and fly.

When the lotus season fades, don't be too quick to assume it has come to an end. As the old stems wither with time, sinking back into the mud and the earth, the fragrant essence within their stems and leaves seems to return in the mud, nourishing the rhizome and quietly nurturing the sprouts for the next lotus season. It waits only for the contrary winds to settle, for the gentle spring breeze to drift softly across the endless lotus fields, as that is the moment the lotus awakens. From deep within the rhizome, tiny lotus eyes begin to sprout, tender shoots pushing through the mud, rising into stems, leaves, blossoms, and seed pods for the world to admire once again.

In spring, the lotus pushes forth its shoots, breaking through the water's surface. This season is regarded as the most significant in the life of a lotus. Lotus growers pay close attention as the flowers begin to bloom, as the fields of lotus rise evenly, strong, and lush. Once the lotus emerges, with leaves spreading wide, rich in fresh green chlorophyll, shimmering softly, smooth and uncurled - that is when one knows the soil, the mud, and the water in the lotus pond are just right, ready to be balanced with nutrients for a season of abundant blossoms. Lotuses primarily grow naturally, in their quiet, untamed manner. Over time, they have been cultivated and gradually adapted to human care and planning. Lotus growers in Dong Nai always keep in their hearts the memory of their ancestors who once "carried swords to expand the land," ensuring that today's lotus seasons are fragrant.

Dong Nai is clearly not only home to fragrant lotuses, as it is also known for its hundreds, even thousands, of species of grasses, trees, flowers, and fruits. Interwoven with everyday life is a deep-rooted spirit of adaptation, essential for endurance and growth. It is this spirit that shapes a cultural region rich in distinct identity, one that embraces exchange, remains selective in what it absorbs, and constantly evolves.

Though life remains filled with hardship, the more difficult the journey, the more dreams take root. In this land where people hold a deep love for the lotus, one day, there will be countless fragrant lotus fields, quietly promising a return when the blooming season arrives amid the skies and soil of Dong Nai.

By: La Giang

Translated by: Huyen Trang - Minho