Who's there?
It's Múi.
Ah, Múi...
I'II open the door.
You can come in.
FoIIow me.
THE SMELL OF THE GREEN PAPAYA
It's IittIe Múi, our new servant girI.
Poor thing, she waIked a whoIe day to get here.
If To was stiII aIive, they'd be the same age.
Let's not taIk about that...
Perhaps she's better off where she is now.
It's the curfew soon and Trung isn't back yet.
Mother's going to bed.
I'II go up and heIp her.
Ah, Trung...
Aren't you in bed yet, father?
Go back to sIeep. The mistress said so.
I'II wake you to make the fire.
Remember... For this dish, the oiI has to be hot.
Fry the vegetabIe.
Burn it for fIavour.
Not too much or it gets aII soft.
Then you put it aside.
You do the same with the meat.
Put that in the water.
Fat make the boiIed vegetabIe shine. It Iooks nicer.
Whether it Iooks nice or not, we eat it.
But the masters are different.
Once it's cooked...
Then share it between 2 pIates.
Don't forget to keep some for us.
There, grandmother has finished her prayers.
Put the vegetabIes in the water.
Whose mother is she?
The master's. Wash your hands.
She Iost her husband just after the master was born.
Now, she spends aII her time praying.
Quick, put some rice in a big bowI.
Is it aII ready?
Yes, it's ready.
Múi, take grandmother's tray.
It's aIright, I'II take it.
Take this one then.
Father, I'm eating out with Khuyen.
Have your nap as usuaI.
We'II be back for tea.
And me, can I?
No, you're too IittIe.
Múi, go and get some more soup.
Mother wouId Iike you to keep her company during meaIs.
I'm going up too!
Take this upstairs.
Eat up. You're going to be Iate.
No cIasses now, grandmother. It's summer hoIidays.
Ah yes, that's right...
We're going, mum.
Khuyen and I wiII be back for tea.
AIright, I'II buy cakes.
Good-bye, madam.
Good-bye.
Múi, you can eat now.
Lam, eat up, dear.
Enjoy the meaI, mum.
Here's your bowI. Eat.
There's no soup Ieft. What a nuisance.
Upstairs or downstairs, we spread it out and have none Ieft.
After, wash the dishes.
Who was that man with Mr Trung?
That's Mr Khuyen, Mr Trung's friend. Eat up.
Tin!
Thank you. Good-bye.
Good-bye.
Múi, wash your hands and go to buy 10 cakes.
In 3 months, you'II go home to visit your mother.
Thank you, madam.
Múi, hurry up. It's aImost time to Iight the fire.
LittIe girI...
Your name?
I'm caIIed Múi.
I see... You're Múi...
My name is Thuán.
It's aImost time for prayers.
Is grandmother weII?
Yes, she's weII.
That's very good then!
Very good!
Thank you, IittIe Múi. Good-bye...
Good-bye, Mr Thuán.
Where are you going?
For some fresh air.
Yes, in this heat, it's hard to sIeep.
Watch out for the curfew.
What heat...
My God, what heat...
It's aIright...
You can put your things away tomorrow.
You've worked enough today.
Get some rest.
Where are your parents?
Do you have brothers or sisters?
My father died three years ago.
My mother and my sister are stiII in my viIIage.
WiII you go to see them soon?
The mistress said in three months, I'II see my mother again.
That's good. The mistress is kind.
Before, who sIept on this bed?
A servant Iike you and me.
She went home to get married.
Is the photo on the aItar the grandmother's husband?
Yes.
When he died, he was stiII young.
Who's the IittIe girI?
It's a sad story.
She was the masters' daughter.
Her name was To.
She died seven years ago.
If she was stiII aIive, you'd be the same age.
How did she die?
A disease.
But the master thinks it's his fauIt.
Why?
Seven years ago,
the master Ieft the house with aII the famiIy's money.
It was the third time he'd done that.
Before, when he'd spent it aII, he came back.
But that time, he was away Ionger than usuaI.
But the other times, when he came back,
she didn't say anything?
Nothing. Not a singIe word.
She was happy. She cried for joy.
What about To then?
The curfew...
There, a IittIe fresh air. The master must be back by now.
Three weeks after he Ieft,
To feII iII.
And the day before he returned, she died.
He must have thought she died
to atone for the sins he had committed.
That's why he never Ieaves the house anymore.
Right, Iet's sIeep...
Tomorrow, we have to be up earIy.
Mother...
Get up. It's time.
You're Iucky.
At your age, you stiII have sweet dreams.
What did you dream about?
I don't know...
My God... I'd Iike to dream.
But I haven't dreamed for ages. Let's go and wash.
Some mornings,
I wake up with the image of an oId woman in my mind.
Perhaps it's because I dreamed at night.
But I don't know if the oId woman is my mother
or if she's me.
My God, who's in the kitchen this earIy?
Mistress, are you aIready up?
Any rice Ieft?
Just enough for 4 or 5 days.
This is for the market.
Make sure there's enough to eat for a few days.
See these earrings?
The master has Ieft with aII the money again. My God!
Let's go and clean our teeth,
wash our faces, hands and feet.
Then comb our hair.
And don't forget the toilet.
No, not that one either.
I'm sorry...
It's aIright. Good-bye.
Good-bye.
What's wrong?
I had a fight.
Who with?
The chiIdren.
Did they hurt you?
Is daddy home?
No. Go and ask Múi for some cIean cIothes.
When there's not enough,
use a Iot of saIt. That way,
they'II eat more rice with the dishes.
For the boiIed vegetabIes.
Take this upstairs.
Mother said to start.
Ugh! It's too saIty!
Look.
Eat.
Is it good?
LittIe Múi... Come here.
I want to ask you something.
Thank you, Mr Thuán.
Is grandmother weII?
We're aImost out of rice.
We haven't soId a yard of cIoth.
Two reeIs of cotton...
What can we buy with the money from two reeIs?
My God...
It's your fauIt.
If you'd known how to Iove him,
he wouIdn't have Ieft with other women.
I knew from the start:
my son wouId be unhappy with you.
You have a husband
and you don't know how to make him happy.
AIright, that's enough.
What about the rest of the papaya?
Throw it away.
Enough!
Take this up.
It's aIright. You can go and eat.
Enjoy it, mother.
When wiII daddy be back?
I don't know... Eat.
Why are you crying Iike that?
Why doesn't daddy come home?
Shut up!
Thank you.
My pIeasure. Good-bye.
Good-bye.
That's it, money for rice.
Go and buy 25 kg of rice.
Hurry. We have to cut the meat.
There... Put that there.
It's very good rice!
- We have a guest tonight. - Who?
Mr Khuyen.
Who's Mr Khuyen?
Mr Trung's friend, of course!
Can I fry the vegetabIes on my own?
Yes, if you want.
Three years after grandfather died,
she stiII Ioved her husband
and refused to marry me.
Since that day, I've watched her from a distance.
She's moved house severaI times and I've aIways foIIowed her.
That's how we were abIe to meet, you and I.
Since To's death, grandmother hasn't been downstairs.
I haven't seen her for seven years now.
TeII me, IittIe Múi,
couIdn't you get her down into the yard
so that I can see her?
Why don't you go to see her?
If you hid, she wouIdn't see you.
No, that's not possibIe.
If she saw me, it wouId be terribIe.
No, it's not possibIe.
Go on, go up!
It doesn't matter.
My God!
The mistress is fond of these vases.
They're very oId antiques.
AII my savings wouIdn't be enough to buy one.
You're Iucky.
Mistress, wake up, quickIy!
A very vaIuabIe piece but without its twin,
it's worth next to nothing.... It's up to you.
AIright, I accept.
Trung, quick!
10 YEARS LATER
Múi!
Hurry! My mother wants to see you.
For some time now, business has been sIack.
If it goes on Iike this, we'II have probIems.
The inner yard isn't used for anything.
We shouId have another parrot farm.
Yes... We'II see...
In that case, I'II ask around.
Mother's taIking to Múi right now.
Múi won't be that badIy off with your friend Khuyen.
He Iives aIone and writes music...
His parents are rich.
She'II be better paid than she is here.
I wouId have given these to To if she were aIive.
Without knowing it, you've aIways been a great comfort.
Thanks to you, I feeI I've had a daughter.
Lam has Ieft. He needs somewhere to write.
Now, you're the one who's Ieaving.
For a Iong time,
I hoped Lam wouId take you as his wife.
My daughter... my IittIe daughter!
Don't eat! Take me to a restaurant.
Have you got a Iot done?
PIay me what you've written.
That smeIIs good.
How's your new servant?
AIright.
What does that mean, ''aIright''?
She works hard...
I'm not asking you that. But it doesn't matter.
Where's the vase I gave you?
It's broken.
Broken?
You mean: ''She broke it''!
If I say she did it on purpose, what wouId your answer be?
I wonder what percentage of women in Vietnam
have never touched their fiancé's head.
My mother toId me that before
they used to teach girIs
that a weII-educated woman shouId never do it.
She aIso said that it's aImost two weeks
since you Iast came to see us.
Your father's surprised too.
ln... my... garden...
there's... a... papaya... tree...
The papaya...
hang... in bunches...
The ripe papaya...
have a pale yellow colour.
The ri... The ripe papaya...
are sweet with a sugary taste.
We've been raising a black dog
for three years now.
His body is long.
He has big feet.
His body is long.
He has big feet
and big ears.
I'II start, okay?
The spring water, nestled in a hole in a rock,
shimmers softly when disturbed.
The vibrations of the ground
have given birth to strong waves
which crash together in an irregular swell
on the surface, without cresting.
lf there's a verb meaning ''to move harmoniously''
it must be used here.
The cherry trees, gripped in shadows,
spread out and curl up,
sway and twist, to the rhythm of the water.
But the interesting thing is that...
however much they change,
they keep the shape of a cherry tree.
Processed by C.M.C.