The house that built Thanh

281E Phan Dinh Phung has weathered through so many storms and street development that I could barely recognize it. The soft dirt road that once was a familiarity to my bare feet is now a cement paved road raised a few feet passed the floor of the home. The building up of the outside has sunken the house so far down that Thanh and the kids have to use an old wooden plank to transport their motorbikes in and out. This also pose a big problem when heavy rain sets; leading all the water in and flooding it. I remember this way too well as a child even when the road outside was low. Everyone would frantically try to stop the flooding water as I carelessly sit on the bed, dry and safe. I distinctly remember fish swimming by as the water was being scooped out.

Through the years, the problem has got even worse presenting Thanh's family with horrible water damaged. The turquoise paint struggles to bind to the cement wall while battling the green and brown mold that creeps up the wall. The effect created is such a visually beautiful mosaic that it was difficult to photograph. You can't help but see the beautiful colors and textures, because the honestly of the condition would be too overwhelmingly painful to handle. Once the flooding was so bad, it damaged the family's supply of dry persimmons that Thanh delivers. The divorced mother and her 3 children did what I luckily never had to do, scoop water out of their home and try to salvage their income from being ruined. Soon it was only Thanh that did the scooping because the children has to sleep and be prepared for school. I come to realized that "low point" doesn't even come close to what she was feeling at that time.

The kitchen and the rest of the house was no better. The attic where my favorite past time was being dragged around on a cloth, now housed two thin pieces of foam use as mattresses. On the wall scribbled "I love my fammily" with two m's written by one of the kid when they first learned English. The thin mattresses was the equivalent of two comforters stacked on top of one another which hurt little Buon lower back.

Regardless of the cracks, mold, chipping paint, and whatever else is present, Thanh's house had a sense of organization and an air of humility. The family of four function very well with love and respect. Everyone has their assigned duties and they accomplished each and everyone of them. The children meticulously cook & clean and look after one another while their mother works. Everyday, they sit together to enjoy lunch and dinner over laughs and occasionally screams from the stressed-out Thanh. And everyday, their lives go on with pride; knowing that their condition doesn't define them or make them any less of a loving family that they are. It's not that Thanh doesn't have the money to fix up the house. Her priorities are just elsewhere: with her 3 children, and the hope that they'll get papers for the interview to leave for the States. Their experience test the human condition and constantly define the strength and bond of a family. In the end, Thanh and her four children are grateful and happy with their situation. You can see their many smiles and hear the abundance of laughters