Writer Suong Nguyet Minh announced that on the morning of 8/4, while on a bus, poet Nguyen Duc Mau suddenly felt dizzy and collapsed. He was rushed to the hospital but did not survive.

The news shocked many in the literary community. According to Suong Nguyet Minh, every morning, Nguyen Duc Mau would walk along Ly Nam De street and Phan Dinh Phung pavement. Passing the gate of Quan doi Newspaper at 4 Ly Nam De, he would shake hands and smile warmly with everyone he met. Sometimes, the poet would ride a bus, "wandering throughout Hanoi city", admiring old rooftops or streets covered in yellow leaves, finding joy in this alongside his writing.

Writer Suong Nguyet Minh currently works at Quan doi Newspaper, where Nguyen Duc Mau once served as head of the poetry department. Suong Nguyet Minh wrote, "House number 4 Ly Nam De called him a gentle person. To remember him is to remember a gentle person. To remember him is to remember 'Truong ca su doan', to remember 'Nam mo va cay tram'... He has departed, but his poetry will remain forever."

Poet Nguyen Duc Mau. Photo: Hoang Thu Pho

According to Nguyen Quang Thieu, Nguyen Duc Mau pursued a poetic path entirely different from his own, yet never imposed his views. The Chairman of the Vietnam Writers' Association stated that Nguyen Duc Mau understood art to be diverse and unique, always generous and fair to younger generations, but never accepting complacency.

Nguyen Duc Mau was born in 1948 in Nam Dinh. He was a poet and military writer who matured during the anti-American resistance. He enlisted in 1966, serving with Division 312 in the Lao battlefield. After the war, he worked as an editor, then studied at Nguyen Du Writing School, completing the first course, before becoming head of the poetry department at Quan doi Newspaper.

The poet created many works focusing on war, soldiers, and the image of women on the home front. He published numerous poetry collections, including "Mua trong Rung Chay", "Bao va Sau Bao", "Canh Rung Nhieu Dom Dom Bay", the novel "Tuong va Linh", and several novellas and short stories. Professor, Doctor, People's Teacher Ma Giang Lan once commented, "Nguyen Duc Mau, like other Vietnamese poets of his time and generation, lived among the people. The wartime life, with its hardships, sacrifices, and heroic achievements, served as rich and abundant material and inspiration for his poetry."

The poet received the State Award for Literature and Arts in 2001, and the ASEAN Literary Award in the same year. Last year, his poem "Nep Nghi" appeared in the high school literature exam, part of the set for candidates on 26/6, who were taking the exam under the 2006 general education program. The work conveyed life's contemplations about letting go of old things and embracing new values.

Phuong Linh