The Story Behind The Vietnamese Phrase: Không Sao Đâu
This collection was inspired by a moment with my homestay host in Hoi An city. She said it to me softly in a moment of worry: "không sao đâu" Before I even knew the meaning or had it translated, from the rhythm of her voice and the phonaesthetics of the phrase, I already felt comfort in my heart. Whatever fear I was carrying dropped off my shoulders. It's a phrase that truly speaks to the heart.
I left Hoi An shortly after to explore more of Vietnam, but it stayed with me. When I start to worry or get in my head, I remember the phrase, and it brings me back to that moment, to the feeling that life isn't as serious as I make it out to be.
I associate the phrase with the rice fields in Hoi An too. I've spent long hours in cafés beside them, thinking, writing, sketching, and watching the green stretch out under that blue sky. Why worry when there's this much beauty, and kindness around us?
This is where the collection comes from, not just the greenery or the blue sky, but that feeling. Không sao đâu. I hope some of it reaches you too.
-Raghad Ali