In a world where boundaries are increasingly delineated, I wonder what would happen if we decided to try to cross them with our own feet.
In this story, the boundary line is the threshold of a house, a gate made of netting, a half-open shutter, a lighted window. It is a story that tells itself, in a low voice, with eyes full of emotion.
It is the story of the inhabitants of a neighbourhood in Can Tho, which stands on two narrow parallel streets. The two smallest arteries keep the largest city in the Mekong Delta alive.
This is the story of those who live their whole lives inside a room, of those who, with one hug, can pack their bags and leave but, in the end, stay.
The world in a room
With a shy smile, people allowed me to cross their most intimate boundary and welcomed me into that small space, in which all their essence is enclosed.
Everything happens in that one room where they spend their daily lives, between steaming soups enjoyed on the threshold, doing their work and sharing time, as if they were one big family.
The walls become pages. Consumed by time, steeped in memories.
The succession of portraits, jealously guarded, side by side as if to keep that bond closer.
A young face illuminated by a light bulb, an old clock marking time, perhaps more slowly and consciously, a lamp that keeps the memory of a loved one lit.
A melancholy look at a past of pain and hope.
The spools of colorful threads weaving together, ready to weave a new story.
School diplomas as great opportunities.
A floor that becomes the ground on which to sink roots.
A love that watches over a new life.
A vintage motorcycle that becomes a diamond set in a newly forged ring.
The gaze that goes beyond the threshold, the view that is always the same: illuminated, rainy, silent, fragrant, comforting.
Finding the true essence in small gestures, kindness, smiles and eyes.
With this intertwining of lives, Vietnam gave me its good morning, reminding me that it is precisely in a small space, in that one room, that the most authentic stories are contained.
