Thầy giáo giao cho chúng em bài tập này mà đứa nào cũng ngắc ngứ. Cứ nghĩ đã qua cái thời gặm bút bình văn rồi, thế mà...


Các bố các mẹ nào hứng thú với việc cảm thụ văn chương thì vào đây bình loạn nhé!


The plum trees in the surrounding gardens began to lose their leaves. Every day, dressed in black half-length trousers, a borrowed coat and a red woven hat, Uncle Tao would push his way through the row of trees and say, “We should pick up the leaves, no?”


Nobody ever picked up the leaves. Everyone was busy. The grandmother went to town while the youngsters tried to pass the job off to each other. Everyone was reluctant, feeling that it was useless work. Would picking up the leaves lead to more plum blossoms? No matter what, the trees would blossom.


Once uncle said, “This year, there are no kids to help collect the leaves.” Hac’s family called all of her suitors “little kids”.


Her suitors came and went. Some of them left things in the house or garden, like small stools, bonsai trees shaped like unicorns or eagles, or a new trough for the hens. Everyone joked. “Hey Hac! Do you remember who left this here?”


Hac’s face lifted into a smile. “Of course I do. I remember all of them. I wrote it all down!” Everyone laughed. “Be careful. If one of them finds your diary, you’ll be ruined.”


That year, nobody collected the plum leaves for Hac. Tuyen got married. Nhat emigrated, and recently Chuc was seen racing by on a motorbike with a girl as small as a candy sitting on the seat behind him, not holding his waist but clearly his lover. These were the “littke kids”, who, scissors in hand, had once tumbled off wooden stools and reached between the plum branches to pick the leaves.


Dark brown plum leaves fell heavily around the tree roots. Hac thought about clearing the garden. She leaned on a jackfruit trunk, wishing the “little kids” were around. She heard the stories they used to repeat in the sound of her broom. Lingering by the gate, she remembered that the trees would bloom before Tet. She had to go to market. Every year she’d explain to whichever suitor was around what had to be prepared for Tet and everyone would laugh. “Unlucky woman, unable to keep anyone for more than a year.”


As the year drew to an end, the others agreed on a test. “Let’s not pick up the leaves this year. Who knows? Maybe the flowers will hardly blossom and it will be more beautiful.”


They hurried off to buy things and to have new clothes made for Tet. On the 28th day before Tet, Hac’s grandma returned, small between jute bags and silk-thread baskets. The children rushed out and laughed: “Tet is coming!” The old woman looked at the garden full of plum leaves, shook her head and said, “You are all dreadful!”


They laughed again.


On the first and second days of Tet, no plum flowers bloomed. Hac saw this Tet as no different from an ordinary Sunday, or a wedding party with fireworks. One of her cousins said, “Don’t blame the trees! You did not lose Tet because there were no flowers!” He stopped talking, but looked like he wanted to tell her that she was really upset because no suitors had come to visit.


Hac laughed it off. She lay down and read some Tet cards, feeling strangely sad. “Why am I so old? Why did I only stay at home over Tet?”


A youngster climbed onto her bed and took a packet of watermelon seeds from his pocket along with a bundle of lucky money to re-count. Hac smiled. “Auntie has seen you counting ten times, hasn’t she?” Before it was like this, she thought, then fell asleep.


Disappointed, everyone cried, “Tet is over!” They shut off the alarm clock and set off for work just as the sun was rising. The old woman started to clear the plum leaves from around every trunk. Somewhere in the village nearby, firecrackers erupted. Hac turned to her grandmother. “What?” The toothless old woman smiled. “It’s a pity that nobody picked up the leaves before.”


The plum flowers blossomed. One afternoon, as promised, a friend brought a cousin to Hac’s home and told him to stay for a while. “I’m off to the market,” she said, then whispered to Hac, “He’s a dignified man!”


The man looked dull. In one hand he held a hat as yellow as a light bulb. He had trouble undoing his sandals before stepping into the room. Hac frowned. When I was young, such a man would not have dared to approach me, she thought. Then she wondered how she had become so bitter.


They sat for a long time, going back and forth over the same eight pages of the newspaper. “Let’s go out to the garden to see the plum flowers,” suggested Hac. They entered the garden where the tardy blossoms were tightly packed on the ten trees. Plenty of flowers had appeared, thought Hac, although not in time to make it feel like Tet.


They walked side by side, each with their arms crossed. The plum leaves crackled under their feet. They didn’t know what to say to each other, but were as grave as the jury members at the spring flower contest. In the late afternoon the sun’s rays grew dimer, as pale as an old veil hung to dry from a plum tree.



2. Understanding details from quick clues


1. Look for names of family members and words of family relations: How many generations lived together in this extended family?


2. Find the words suitors and names: How many suitors were mentioned in the story?


3. What did the suitors do for Hac’s family?


4. Find at least four examples to prove whether they live in an urban or rural area.



3. Understanding details and their inferences


1. The story mentions about firecrackers. Around which year did the story take place, can you guess?


3. How did Hac feel (paragraph 7)? Why? What was her problem?


4. Why did Tet make no difference to her?


5. What did a friend try to do for her?


6. What was her impression of this gentleman?


7. What do you think of him? Why?


8. Hac's face lifted into a smile. Why so? What is the effect of describing her smile that way?


9. Why did the old woman shake her head and say "You are all dreadful!" What made her disappointed?


10. Explain the phrase Hac laughed it off as much as you can in your own words.


11. Who was Auntie? Why was that way of calling a person used? (paragraph 12)


12. How do you feel about the last paragraph? What does it signify?


13. What do you think about Hac? What makes you think that way?


14. What can you say about the tone of the story? What effect does it make?


15. In what way does the title of the story match with its content?


16. What do you think would happen after Hac met the man? Write the story's sequel as much as you can.


“You did not lose Tet because there were no flowers!” – scope of negation