Mẹ

I have always wanted to do a motion piece for my mother, but I haven’t found the right song do pull it together. “Long Me” was obviously my first choice, but that song is like the national anthem for Vietnamese mothers. I needed something more personal.

A couple weeks ago, Cu Dao got up around three in the morning and didn’t want to go back to sleep. Half asleep, I took him down to the living room trying to get him to close his eyes. I reached for a CD without even looking at the title and it was Ngoc Tu Anh’s Nhin Noi Niem Troi. I have listened to the album a while back and was impressed with her lyricism. That night in particular, “Me, Ngan Doa Hoa Doi,” struck my chord. The opening smooth sax intro turned me off, but Hong Nhung’s heartfelt delivery tuned me in. Cu Dao slept in my arms, but I couldn’t help repeat the song again and again.

The next day, I began to hunt down all of my mom’s photos and started the slideshow. This is very much a personal piece and I just had to work with what I had. I started off incorporating types with images, but the types were distracting so I scrapped the words and just let the photos speak for themselves.

With Mẹ, I just want show my love and appreciation for the sweet lady who brought me into this world and has always been there for me. Love you, ma.