Let love paint the four seasons.

Touching Spring - Love blossoms and bears fruit.

Love at the beginning is like spring flowers blossoming and sprouting, often bringing very fresh experiences. It's not just about the initial excitement; love in youth is filled with so many emotions.

“I met him when I was in high school, it was like ‘love at first sight.’ I felt an immediate connection with him from the first meeting. But back then, I guess because we were young and not destined for each other, we didn’t become a couple. After that, we both had our own lives and other relationships, so we lost contact,” - Pham Phuong Trinh (24 years old) recounts her love story with her husband Viet Anh (25 years old).

It seemed as though their spring had passed and their feelings would forever remain a beautiful memory. But once again, Phuong Trinh rediscovered the spring of her eighteen-year-old self. She said emotionally, “Three years later, I accidentally found his Instagram account and playfully followed him, but then immediately unfollowed him. Surprisingly, he followed me back right away and even messaged me to ask how I was doing. At that time, we were both single. We decided to ‘start over’ again to see if we could fall in love.”

Their love blossomed, officially tying the knot for Phuong Trinh and Viet Anh when she received the joyful news of their baby, Ichi. Viet Anh, a dancer, participated in the Street Dance program and had to fly to Saigon for filming. The day Phuong Trinh gave birth was also the day Viet Anh had to go to the airport. The night before giving birth, Phuong Trinh was exhausted and waited for labor to begin. But childbirth wasn't easy or quick.

All night, she clung to the bed frame in agony, while Viet Anh watched, heartbroken, blaming himself for not being able to help Phuong Trinh endure that pain. Several long hours passed with agonizing contractions and profuse sweating, but Trinh still couldn't give birth naturally. She switched to a Cesarean section – the procedure she feared most.

One might have thought that after giving birth, she would temporarily forget about her husband's exam and breathe a sigh of relief, but no, Phuong Trinh sat up and asked Viet Anh why he was still there, why he hadn't gone to the airport yet. Tears streamed down the pale face of the young woman who had just given birth, a testament to the innocent yet intense love of her youth.

“Throughout our relationship, we’ve been in a long-distance relationship. There have been arguments, moments of sadness, but we’ve never once thought about breaking up. The most important thing in this relationship is trust, because without it, we might not have given each other a second chance. Without trust, we wouldn’t have been able to maintain a long-distance relationship for so long.” Spring often brings such subtle and delicate emotions to people.

Summer arrives in the courtyard - A vibrant, stirring feeling within us.

As people mature, love is like summer, reaching its peak like ripe fruit hanging on a tree. It also brings the sweet aftertaste of those at the end of their youth. Quynh Tram (31 years old) shares her simple yet joyful love story as she enters adulthood.

Quynh Tram, a university lecturer, met Vu Anh (31 years old - a construction engineer) at a high school reunion. Initially, they thought they would just briefly cross paths as old friends, but they gave each other the opportunity to get to know each other better.

Both of them had experienced the ups and downs of love, especially Quynh Tram, who thought it would be difficult for her to love anyone again. However, Vu Anh, a gentle and shy construction engineer, brought back those soft feelings she thought she had long lost.

At their age, it would seem they would love in a different way, but no, Vu Anh and his girlfriend still maintain very simple dating habits like they did in their student days. They eat street food together, have drinks, and stroll under the starry sky.

On windy nights, knowing that Quynh Tram craved snacks, Vu Anh didn't hesitate to travel over 20 kilometers from his workplace just to stop by their usual shop to buy his girlfriend a bag of warm chestnuts before hurrying back to work.

In the gentle afternoon breeze, sunlight streamed down the corner of the yard where Quynh Tram sat drinking water. She shared, "My husband is gentle, a good listener, understanding, forgiving, and faithful. Having similar interests is good; you don't need to share too many because everyone is different. However, a few shared interests can bring two people closer together."

Reuniting after sixteen years at a class reunion on a scorching summer afternoon, Quynh Tram and Anh Vu decided to get married a year later, also on a sweltering summer afternoon. Finally, baby Bon arrived in the couple on another sunny summer day.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Quynh Tram hummed the poem she had written: "The poem 'Sending My Feelings to the White Clouds' is a poem I wrote for both my husband and our child. It recounts a little bit of our love story, a whispered confession to my husband."

We met:

Sixteen years later…

I am now a teacher.

The rose garden opens its path for anyone to enter.

"After a few missed appointments, when will it ever be fulfilled?"

It seems that summer witnessed and marked the small, simple yet deeply connected and complete love of Quynh Tram: “The time we met again was when he was 27 and I was 26. Both of us had experienced deeply ingrained loves, thinking we could never open our hearts to anyone else again. But when we met again and fell in love, we both realized that love never died, even at nearly 30. I still felt the same excitement, the same anger, the same confusion, the same happiness as a young girl experiencing love for the first time. Both childlike and profound.”

Autumn arrives, the leaves change color - Sharing a little bit of love

In their early forties, their love story takes on a serene golden hue, like the changing leaves of autumn. Taking advantage of the pleasant rainy weather, I invited Mr. Chu Xuan Hieu (45 years old) and Ms. Tran Thuy Tien (33 years old) – Mr. Hieu's wife – to chat about the feelings of their long-time relationship.

Xuan Hieu was originally a skilled chef. In his youth, he traveled extensively to learn how to cook delicious dishes. He studied in China and worked all over the country. During that time, he and Thuy Tien weren't together, but they still kept the flame of their love burning brightly through their care and affection for each other.

Having spent a very long time together, Mr. Xuan Hieu and Ms. Thuy Tien deeply understand that love and the bond between two independent individuals require a great deal of respect and understanding to last: “When you’re in love, you can be carefree about anything, but when you get married, you have to seriously consider your partner’s flaws. If you love their strengths, then you must also carefully consider their weaknesses. They do the same; they accept both your strengths and weaknesses,” Ms. Thuy Tien said with a smile.

Mr. Xuan Hieu also smiled and looked at his wife with affectionate eyes, interspersed with a few playful remarks. He confided that he was very lucky to have married Ms. Thuy Tien. She was originally a Western medicine student, but because she followed her husband, she quit her job at the hospital to take over her husband's family's traditional medicine business. Witnessing her struggles, single-handedly caring for the children, managing the household, and running the business, Mr. Xuan Hieu worked even harder to ease his wife's burden.

Ms. Thuy Tien shared: "During the time I was getting married, I considered what I lacked and what my husband's relatives were like, so that I could balance and change accordingly."

Even though they've been in love for over a decade, they still often tease each other, making each other feel comfortable instead of boredom because of their long relationship.

Mr. Xuan Hieu believes his wife's love is immense and practical, as she willingly sacrificed her career to stay home and take care of everything: "Sometimes in relationships, two people need to understand, empathize, and know how to overlook things that don't go their way instead of nitpicking in order to stay together for a long time."

He also emphasized, "Trust is the most important thing!" It's clear that love doesn't need to be loud or extravagant; love that stems from genuine feelings and a willingness to share and help each other in times of difficulty is truly precious.

Warm Winter - Reliving a Love Letter

The final story that Travellive wants to tell is the romantic love story of Ms. Hanh and Mr. Manh Quynh, both in their sixties.

In a conversation with Huyen Trang (32 years old) - the eldest daughter of the family, the reporter learned more about their touching and beautiful love story: “According to what I was told, my parents' love story began when my father met my mother through a group of friends called Tu Nguyen. Back then, the elders were very particular about choosing a son-in-law. My grandmother chased away anyone who came to court my mother, but for some reason, she only liked my father. They dated for a year before getting married. But my father always joked with my mother that she saw him playing the violin on Cau Dat street, looking so handsome and romantic, that she fell in love with him and decided to marry him.”

When Bích Hạnh first came to live with Mr. Mạnh Quỳnh's family as his wife, she lived happily in the protective embrace of her thoughtful husband. Knowing that his wife wasn't used to riding a motorbike, Mr. Mạnh Quỳnh woke up early almost 365 days a year to take her to work, except on his days off.

During those years, the violinist never let his wife wash dishes for even a single day. Both being teachers and having gone through difficult times together, they were very conscious of maintaining a happy and peaceful home through unconditional compromise and sacrifice.

To this day, their love story remains incredibly beautiful, with Ms. Hanh and her husband frequently going out on dates and sharing stories about their lives. It seems that even in their twilight years, they don't feel the coldness of age or the chill in their hearts; instead, they warm each other with their burning love.

Huyen Trang, visibly moved, handed me some old letters, stained with the passage of time and wrapped with utmost care. Inside, I found heartfelt words from Uncle Manh Quynh to Aunt:

"My dear Bich Hanh..."

My dear, you're probably very surprised, aren't you? Why didn't I tell you instead of writing these letters? I understand, we're close to each other, not thousands of miles apart. My love, even now I can't understand myself, it's so strange. The questions of "why," why couldn't I tell the person I love...

(The letter is 34 years old)

Throughout life, love stories encompass a myriad of emotions. Yet, it seems that every love story leaves a lasting impression and evokes profound feelings within us. From the gentle touch of a hand in spring to the tight embrace under the shimmering summer sun. Then, suddenly, we catch each other's tender gaze, the faint scent of autumn rice wafting through the air, and we rest our heads on each other's shoulders for warmth in winter. No matter how turbulent life's journey may be, love remains a path to return to.

Ha Chuu