Cô giáo Hạnh Phúc

Vietnamese below, DAY 13

Today is the Full Moon Day and also Vesak Day (Buddha's Birthday), Buddhist Era 2570. Did you go to the temple or have a vegetarian meal today?

Eating vegetarian is not only about diet or following a religious lifestyle. Many people choose to eat vegetarian food for their health and as a part of their daily habits.

In Vietnam, vegetarian eating is becoming more and more popular. It brings many meaningful values.

First of all, eating vegetarian food reflects compassion because it helps to avoid killing animals. It can also help maintain good health and lower the risk of certain diseases such as high cholesterol, diabetes and some types of cancer.

Nowadays, many young people choose a vegetarian diet to protect the environment and to cultivate a more peaceful state of mind. Some families eat vegetarian meals on the 1st and 15th days of the lunar month. Others follow a vegetarian diet regularly, while many Buddhists remain vegetarian throughout their lives.

What about you? Do you eat vegetarian food? If so, what is your reason?

1000 days to write diary in English

Vietnamese below, DAY 12 🌱

What do you usually do on weekends? Still go to work? Stay at home to clean and relax? Go out or go shopping or take your children to visit your parents?

As a freelancer, I don't really have weekends. My weekends are almost the same as any other day. The only difference is that I often have even more things to do.

My main job is teaching. In the past, I taught four yoga classes a day and an 1:1 English lesson in the evening and I helped my family sell agricultural products at Vuon trong Lang. Of course, some daily tasks such as grocery shopping, cooking, laundry and cleaning were also essential parts of maintaining a happy and balanced life.

I'm used to multitasking, so my day usually starts at 4:30AM and ends around 11PM. On less busy days, I can take a little time to rest. Most of the time, I work straight through the afternoon without much of a break.

There was a period when I started my day at 3:45AM and taught six yoga classes along with two one-on-one English lessons every day. Looking back, I don't even know how to describe. I pushed myself too hard and never allowed myself to get sick. But perhaps life was kind to me and I stopped teaching yoga. Now I focus entirely on teaching English.

And you? Is your job stable? Are you passionate about what you do?

1000 days to write diary in English

Vietnamese below, DAY 11

Hello everyone, today is Friday! Have you finished all your work for this week yet?

How was your day today? Tomorrow is the weekend and it’s also the end of the month already!

Time passes so quickly. It feels like just yesterday the Tet holiday atmosphere was everywhere, with hundreds of flowers blooming beautifully, but now summer has already arrived. Everything has its limits and time is the same.

Time is not like money. Money can be printed, but time cannot — and we definitely cannot save it for later. How much time have you spent making money and how much time have you spent taking care of yourself?

Today, it rained continuously from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. The rain was so heavy that it felt like it washed away the sunny sky. It was raining cats and dogs.

Do summer rains refresh your soul too? Do you like the rain?

When you were little, did you ever play in the rain? Do you have any childhood memories that you still remember? Tell me about them tomorrow, okay?

1000 days to write diary in English

Vietnamese below, DAY 10

It’s late at night now. I just finished my class, then I spent my time with a whole basket of indochina dragonplum so it’s already almost 11 p.m. The fruits were already peeled and washed, so I had to prepare them immediately. If not, they would become bitter and sour. In summer, having a glass of iced indochina dragonplum (dracontomelon) juice is absolutely great!

You know? Everything moves in cycles and so do I. Sometimes I’m intense, sometimes I’m gentle. Especially in this life, everyone has both happiness and sadness. At the time I get boring moments, maybe books are my best friend to comfort my souls.

Whenever I read books, I feel like I become many different characters, while the author is the one who reveals and expresses every little detail so vividly.

Today, when I opened my diary file to write these lines, I also logged into Facebook and saw a memory from eight years ago about the books by Maxim Gorky that I once read. He wrote three novels: My Childhood, My Apprenticeship and My Universities.

One of the quotes that deeply influenced my life was:
“You are not a medal hanging around my neck. Go and earn your own living.”

And from that moment, I stepped into life on my own.

It’s late now. Sleep well, okay?

Đêm đã khuya, mình vừa mới kết thúc lớp học xong thì lay hoay với 1 rổ quả sấu cũng gần 11h. Sấu đã chà vỏ rửa sạch rồi, nên phải sơ chế và làm ngay, nếu không là sẽ bị đắng và chát. Mùa hè đến, nếu có 1 ly nước sấu ngâm thì tuyệt cà là vời!

Bạn biết không? Mọi thứ đều có tính chu kỳ và mình cũng thế! Lúc thì dữ dội, khi thì dịu êm và đặc biệt là cuộc đời ai cũng có những niềm vui xen lẫn những nỗi buồn. Những lúc mình thấy đời buồn tẻ, có lẽ sách là người bạn để mình giải sầu.

Khi đọc sách, mình thấy bản thân mình được hóa thành nhiều nhân vật, mà chính tác giả là người đã bộc lộ và thể hiện rõ từng chi tiết!

Hôm nay, khi vừa mở file nhật kí ra để viết những dòng này, cùng lúc mình đăng nhập FB thì có thông báo kỉ niệm cách đây 8 năm về bộ sách của Maxim Gorky mà mình đã từng đọc. Ông có 3 quyển tự truyện: thời thơ ấu, kiếm sống và những trường đại học của tôi. Và một trong những trích dẫn đã đưa mình vào đời đó là “mày ko phải là cái mề đay treo lủng lẳng trên cổ tao, tự đi mà kiếm ăn”

Và thế là mình tự bước vào đời 🙂

Thôi khuya rồi, bạn ngủ ngon nhé!

1000 days to write diary in English

Vietnamese below, DAY 9

Today, around 2PM, where I live it rains heavily. The rain likes it was soothing my soul after a hot summer afternoon full of sunshine. Every time it rains hard, I miss my parents so much.

My house is more than 200 kilometers away from my parents’ house. The distance is not too far but it’s difficult to move from my house, so I cannot simply go home whenever I miss them.

Back when I was still living in Binh Duong, every time I missed them, I would just wait for the weekend. On weekends, I could call my dad to pick me up or take a taxi to go and after about 50 minutes, I would already be standing in front of my house.

Now, whenever I miss my home, I can only see my parents through my phone screen. My eyes still fill with tears whenever I think about my father and mother.

But maybe no peace comes without sadness, and no love exists without longing right?

Right now, my biggest wish is simply for my parents to stay healthy. As for me, I have a dreamjob that I truly love so that makes me feel rich enough already. Hihihi.

Enjoy your evening, see you!

1000 days to write diary in English

Vietnamese below, DAY 8

Today, I get up at 5 a.m. This good habit helps me get many things done early in the morning. When a new day begins, I usually finish my first task that cooking rice for my dogs.

I have four dogs and four cats in total. Do you think that’s a lot? Everyone who visits my house is usually a little scared! Dogs are loyal friends. They don’t need delicious food, but they will always be the first to protect you from strangers. Dogs don’t need beautiful clothes either, yet they wag their tails happily every time you call their names.

Well, maybe that’s why people jokingly say: “You may not need a lover, but you definitely need a few dogs and cats.” Honestly, that sounds pretty reasonable to me! Cats are different but they’re so cute!

Recently, I’ve also been making bilingual videos about learning English for beginners, so maybe I will write shorter posts for my “1000 Days to Write a Diary in English” journey from now on.

Now it’s time to do yoga.
See you again tomorrow!
Sending you lots of love!

1000 days to write diary in English

Vietnamese below, DAY 7

Today is the first day of the week. Mondays usually come with a lot of work that why people often call it the “Monday Blues”

Today, the weather is crazy hot. The temperature outside where I live reaching more than 32°C.

Now, I don’t want to write anything because I honestly don’t know what to write about. But after finishing my class, I open my file again and write a few lines. I told myself that discipline means taking action every single day — even if it’s just writing for the sake of writing.

You know what? Nobody in this world is perfect. Every person is born like a beautiful flower. Each flower has its own fragrance and unique beauty, just like every person has both strengths and weaknesses.

Why do we secretly admire other people but never try to improve our own value? Why do we convince ourselves that we are not capable enough, then choose to give up and step back? So, give yourself a reason to start. And if you ever want to quit, go back to the place where you first began.

1000 days to write diary in English