Ăn gì chua? By HIEN HUYNH
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“did you eat yet?” ma would ask “did you eat yet?”
and so we began, crushing pepper below our feet, with savory swaying hands ‘bò lúc lắc’ - shaking beef sizzling and slicing through the space between butter, bread, and bodies a different sense of taste we began, peeling peeling onions into the past she began, sharing, “there was a time” when
ma would ask “Ăn gì chưa?”
sunset, at a busy intersection, swollen ankles, working infinite, ma freezes time, and asks. passing by her, separate paths, ma bends gravity, and asks even sitting, already eating at the dinner table, she’d ask
as if she did not need to know if it rained if it poured if the world was ending she would say “did you eat yet?”
rainwater, visited through the roof leaking a routine of empty bellies bombs from the sky, sprinkling over the horizon screams and cries, nourished by sweet sweet lullabies cold rice, metal on skin, guns and chopsticks and daydreaming stomachs she waited and weighted waiting, and weighing the pounds of loss lives fleeing, floating, following hiding, hoping, swimming, rowing, running, flying, farther and
and i eating, eating at her words eating at her sustained, uninterrupted, unrelenting, perpetual, persistent, ceaselessness effort taking for granted the ten thousand times she had asked pouring her every ounce of love, into soft beds of turmeric noodles, ‘Mì Quảng’ cuddled with shy crescent intimate shrimp, ‘Bún bò Huế’ hot spas of lemongrass beef but preferred chicken soup, angry roasted bell pepper jalapeno dated salmon shouting over saucy-sauteed-selflessness grains of bountiful brown rice ‘Cơm tấm’
farther and father and father and daughter and daughter and water and water
and she, she, with a little water in her eyes crystallizes tears, and shelves away memories, transforming into recipes she arrives, turning watery eyes into mouth watery flavors
and she asks and asks and asks and i eat and eat and eat
until full to my throat, too full, pushing words and courage to my throat i ask “would you dance with me?” cooling peanut sauce, spring rolls the dishes lined up, the stove went to sleep, the oven djayed
she arrives, and arrives, finally, back to here, here, holding i and i, hearing, dancing with ma looking to my eyes she asks, “did you eat yet?” “Ăn gì chưa?”
HIEN HUYNH was born in Da Nang, Vietnam. Through the sacrifices, hardship, and journey of his parents, Hien dedicates his artistic and living practices to share their story to the oceanic constellation of narratives. As a teaching artist and performer, he is committed to support the generation of now and be- yond to contribute to human compassion, love, and interconnectedness. He is honored to have performed in the works of Lenora Lee Dance, Kim Epifano, Robert Moses’ Kin, Kinetech Arts, PUSH, DSDT, and punkkiCO. Reflecting with immense gratitude for the sharing and generosity of the bay area and beyond, he wishes you all a year full of well beingness, joy, and kindling of flame. hien-huynh.com
Audio recorded and edited by Andréa Spearman, Dancers’ Group Artist Resource Manager
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In Dance | May 2014 | dancersgroup.org
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