Green Youth March

When the golden sunlight pours down on every corner of the world, March is also in full swing. When I look at the sunlight dancing and playing, my heart is filled with excitement and nostalgia for the old days. Everything seems like it was just yesterday, I see myself as a young man of eighteen or twenty years old, eagerly volunteering for the beloved green shirt in the gentle month of March. I don't know why that sky-blue shirt has a special attraction for me. I fell in love with it at first sight, and then stuck with it throughout my beautiful youth. During my student years, I carried within me a stream of passionate blood, a youthful fervor, willing to contribute my part to the month of March to the fullest. And that was probably the most beautiful period of my life.

I remember my friends - the innocent and naive university students of that time, nervous to the point of losing sleep waiting for the day to "go to war" with the leaders of the Youth Union. Starting with small activities such as cleaning, collecting trash, and propagating to people to keep the environment green - clean - beautiful in the area around the school or agencies, units, and main roads of the city. And then there were longer trips to different regions to teach children, live with the indigenous people. When "going to war", each of us was equipped with a blue shirt, with a red flag with a yellow star in the breast pocket and a cute floppy hat. Back then, no one thought about the loss, just needed the school Youth Union to launch and participate. Putting aside the leisurely weekends, we set off again. It seemed that when we put on the blue shirt, we were given an invisible strength. The girls who often get carsick when singing and chatting with the youth volunteers, their carsickness disappears without them realizing it. I remember the drops of sweat soaking their blue shirts while doing seemingly small, nameless tasks for hours. I remember the hasty wipes on their sunburnt faces. I remember the blistered, bleeding hands… I remember the funny stories from my teammates when they were on duty. I remember the neighbors holding each person’s hand to thank them…

The years of youth wearing the green shirt made me mature a lot. From a shy person, I became more active and proactive. That was the luggage for me to confidently step into life. Those years nurtured a compassionate heart, ready to share and sympathize with the less fortunate. And I realized that the green volunteer shirt contained the whole sky of youth, the aspiration, the dream, ready to give without caring about myself. Our youth is more meaningful thanks to the years of volunteering, wearing the beloved green shirt.

Now it is March, I have passed my youth but my heart is still full of enthusiasm and passion for dedication. Looking at the younger generation wearing the green shirt, my heart is filled with emotion. In my ears, I still hear the song of the late musician Trinh Cong Son: "Living in life, you need a heart...". March will be truly more beautiful and complete when there are hearts and youth of the community willing to join hands.

Essays by NGUYEN VAN CHIEN