Official news reported 90,000 houses destroyed, thousands of people missing and hundreds dead. Although there was significant damage in Hue city, the real disaster was in villages outside the city. We joined a group of local Buddhist monks, nuns, and lay followers to these areas.
We traveled in a boat stocked with rice sacks, instant noodles, and western medicine. After seeing three hours of bloated carcasses of pigs and dogs floating by, we arrived. People were sick and hurt, had not slept or eaten in days, had lost family members and friends, and were delirious. After taking the names of each family, supplies were distributed.
A few years ago a Buddhist monk was arrested and jailed for organizing an illegal flood relief mission in the Mekong Delta. I was worried this mission would have similar consequences, but was assured that things had changed since then. And in fact the efforts of the Buddhist community were to continue every day. And there seemed to be a lot of money coming from the Vietnamese and foreign governments, NGOs, and individual donations.
Although it appeared that things were slowly getting back to normal, apparently the worst was not over. A local doctor expressed concern over the long term effects of contaminated food and water. Chicken, pork, beef, and vegetables were not safe to eat. And a large portion of the rice which was just harvested was lost, facing the local population with hunger in months to come.
Now that immediate danger was over talk shifted to why this flood was so severe. Some argued that deforestation during the Vietnam war and more recent problems of logging was the major cause. In the past dense foliage served to hold the water back and absorb it, but now heavy rains ran right on through.
On the day that we were to leave, the skies were blue and sunny, the streets were again busy with motorbikes, bicycles and cyclos, like nothing had ever happened. The roads were so dry and dusty that it was hard to see. Sections of Hai Van Pass were closed off due to landslides. At one point we traversed a temporary bridge whose bolts were tightened by hand after each vehicle crossed. As we got further and further away from Hue, what we had lived through became clear.
In an attempt to learn what Vietnam was really all about we met the US Ambassador, and talked to American and Vietnamese veterans. We visited hospitals and orphanages, and did volunteer work with victims of Agent Orange. We visited H’mong families in the mountains to see what life is like for minorities in Vietnam. We knew that war, poverty, and now natural disaster was part of life in Vietnam.
But the real Vietnam came forth in the way that people dealt with this disaster, gracefully and with a sense of humor. One guy walked around in a life preserver even though water was only knee deep. Even while people were worried about their well-being, I felt that we were being cared for like honored guests. At our hotel they made us food while standing on chairs in a flooded kitchen.
In ancient Vietnam, Lord Heaven was the master of the Universe, and even in the midst of modernization most people probably agree that this is still true today. Tradition serves to make sense out of that which cannot be explained but must be endured. A man from a ravaged village taught me a saying from Vietnam’s Buddhist heritage. “Only from great suffering,” he said, “can there be great wisdom.” And this truly was my Vietnam experience. See page 24 for a report on new floods