PUH KWAN OF AN TIEL, THE WIFE OF EH SY.

IF ONLY I HAVE "ONLY" BEEN A LEGEND'S LEAD ACTRESS.

AN UNGAINED START.

IF ONLY I WILL POSSESS A DESIRED PERSONA, I WANTED TO BE A PULPY RIND SHADED WITH PASSIONATE GREEN AND STRONG RED AFRICAN CITRUS FLESH PEPPERED SUGAR, FILLED WITH REFRESHING MOUTH-WATERY JUICES SURROUNDED BY LONG FERVENT VINE NATURALLY SUCCULENT MEANT ON AN INTENSIVE BURNING CANICULAR DAYS.

PHEW...

WELL ANYWAY, THIS ONE WAS A REAL STORY. READ CAREFULLY..

LONG AGO, VIETMAN WAS RULED BY GENEROUS KINGS. ONE OF THESE WAS KING HUNG HUONG THE MOST STRICT AND DEMANDING OF ALL, HAD ONLY TWO DAUGHTERS, AND SO HE ADOPTED A POOR BOY FROM A FARAWAY ISLAND. HE NAMED THE CHILD -DIY EH SY AND CHERISHED HIM AS IF HE WERE HIS OWN.

EH SY GREW TO BE INTELLIGENT, WISE AND SKILLFUL AND THE KING LOVED HIM SO MUCH. HE DECIDED THAT EH SY MUST MARRY HIS FIRST DAUGHTER AN TIEL. TOGETHER THEY WOULD RULE THE LAND AFTER THE KING DIED.

EH SY AND AN TIEL MARRIED AND THEY LOVED EACH OTHER SUPER DUPER EXTRA SOO MUCH VERYYY COMBO, TRIPLE EXCEPTIONALLY, TONS SURPASSINGLY, GREATLY, HIGHLY, MIGHTY AND EXCEEDINGLY LOVE EACH OTHER DEEPLY.

THEY HAD TWO CHILDREN. (BOTH MALE - AS AN TIEL WANTED.) AND THEIR LIVES APPEARED TO BE BLESSED BY THE HEAVENS.

BUT SOME IN THE KING'S COURT ENVIED THE YOUNG MAN, AND SOON THEIR ENVY TURNED TO HATRED. THEY BEGAN TO SPREAD STUPID RUMORS OF HIS PRIDE AND DISRESPECT. THESE STORIES (BUT OFCOURSE!) WERE UNTRUE. BUT STILL THE RUMORS SPREAD NATIONWIDE.

BEFORE LONG THEY REACHED THE KING.

THE KING BEGAN TO WONDER. MIGHT THESE STORIES BE TRUE? WOULD HIS OWN DAUGHTER HELP TO DESTROY HIM? WOULD THE YOUNG MAN HE HAD FOR SO LONG TREATED AS HIS OWN SON FORGET HIS FAVORED POSITION AND TURN ON THE KING?

HE BEGAN TO THINK BETRAYAL MIGHT BE POSSIBLE.

DISTRAUGHT BY HIS SUSPICIONS, THE KING DECIDED HE MUST EXILE EH SY,. WITH A HEAVY HEART BUT FEARFUL QOF THE FUTURE, THE KING SENT THE WHOLE FAMILY FAR AWAY TO LIVE ON THEIR OWN ON A DESOLATE ISLAND.

"IF EH SY IS A BRAVE AND ABLE AS HE CLAIMS, HE WILL SURVIVE." THE KING ANNOUNCED. HE HID HIS TEARS AS THE FAMILY DEPARTED, FOR HE BELIEVED THEY COULD NEVER SURVIVE.

THE ISLAND WAS BATTERED BY HEAVY WINDS AND WAVES THAT CRASHED UPON THE SHORES. AN TIEL WEPT WHEN SHE SAW HOW THEY WOULD LIVE .. ALONE, AND WITHOUT ANY COMFORTS AND LUXURIES SHE WAS ACCUSTOMED TO.

BUT SHE LOVED HER HUSBAND, AND SHE HAD FAITH, AND SO SHE REMAINED DEVOTED TO EH SY. TOGETHER THEY WORKED HARD TO MAKE LIFE BEARABLE UPON THAT BARREN ISLAND.

ONE DAY AS EH SY WALKED ALONG THE BEACH, HE NOTICED A STRANGE YELLOW SEA BIRDS AMONG THE ROCKS. WHEN HE CLIMBED UP TO SEE THEM CLOSER, HE NOTICED THEY WERE PECKING AS BLACK SEEDS, AND SOME OF THESE DROPPED INTO THE SAND.

EH SY, DECIDED HE WOULD PLANT THESE SEEDS. WHAT COULD HE LOSE? PERHAPS SOMETHING COULD GROW IN THIS PLACE. WHEN HE RETURNED HOME, HE TOLD HIS WIFE, "IF THESE SEED WERE GOOD FOR BIRDS, THEY WOULD BE GOOD FOR US."

TOGETHER THEY PREPARED THE GROUND AND PLANTED THE SEEDS.

SOON THEY NOTICED TENDER SHOOTS SPROUTING FROM THE EARTH, AND SHOOTS GREW AND CREPT ALONG THE GROUND. BUDS APPEARED ON THESE VINES, AND THESE FLOWERED AND TURNED INTO FRUITS. TO EH SY'S AMAZEMENT, THESE FRUITS GREW AND GREW, LARGER THAN PEACHES, THEN AS LARGE AS HEAR, AND COVERED WITH GREEN SKIN SMOOTH TO TOUCH.

THE FRUITS SMELLED DELIGHTFUL. AND WHEN EH SY SLICED ONE OPEN, HE DISCOVERED INSIDE BEAUTIFUL RED PULP SPRINKLED WITH THOSE MARVELOUS SEEDS. HE TASTED THE PULP AND SMILED, FOR THE TASTE WAS FRESH AND COOL AND SWEET. HE CALLED HIS FRUITS "PUH LA" OR RED MELON. BUT LATER HIS WIFE, DIED - JOKE!
HIS WIFE AN TIEL, HEARING THE CRY OF THE BIRDS THAT HAD CARRIED THE SEEDS, SAID, LISTEN TO THEIR SONG.

PU QUAN .. PU QUAN,

BIRDS SEEMED TO CRY

PUH KWAN

AND LATER ..

PA KWAN .. PAKWAN,

HIS WIFE WEPT WITH JOY AS SHE TASTED THE FIRST PAKWAN. AND THE FAMILY PICKED THE FRUITS AND STORED THEM CAREFULLY INSIDE WHERE THE SUN WOULD NOT ROT THEIR SKIN.

THEY WENT ON PLANTING, AND BY YEARS END THEY HAD SO MANY WATERMELONS THAT THEY BEGAN TO OFFER THESE TO PASSING SAILORS, TRADING THEM FOR FOOD AND CLOTHING, FOR SPICES AND TOYS AND OTHER THINGS THEY NEEDED FOR COMFORT.

ONE DAY EH SY SAT UPON THE BEACH LOOKING LONGINGLY TOWARD HIS OLD ISLAND. SUDDENLY HE HAD AN IDEA. HE GATHERED SOME WATERMELONS AND UPON THESE HE WROTE HIS NAME. THEN HE SET THEM ADRIFT.

WHEN THE KINGS SERVANTS DISCOVERED THESE PECULIAR FRUITS BOBBING UPON THE SEA OUTSIDE THE PALACE, THEY GATHERED THEM AND CARRIED THEM TO THE KING.

WHEN THE KING SAW EH SY'S NAME, HIS HEART SWELLED.

"SO HE IS NOT DEAD!!"
THE KING CRIED OUT WITH JOY. THEN HE TASTED THE STRANGE AND WONDERFUL NEW FRUIT, AND HE UNDERSTOOD THAT EH SY'S RESOURCEFULNESS HAD SERVED HIM AND HIS STUPIDITY, I MEAN.. WELL HE LET HIS DAUGHTER DIE RIGHT??

BUT THE KING LONGED FOR THE LOVES OF HIS LIFE-HIS SON, HIS VERYYYY OWN DAUGHTER (WHICH HE LOVED LESS BECAUSE SHE IS NOT A MAN.) AND GRAND CHILDREN- AND SO HE SENT FOR THEM.

AND FOREVER AFTERWARDS ALL THE PEOPLE OF VIETMAN TOLD THE STORY OF THOSE BIRDS AND THEIR MAGICAL BLACK SEEDS AND THE SWEETNESS OF EH SY'S GIFT, THE PUH KWAN. :-)

BEAUTY, EH??

HOPE YOU ENJOYED IT.

LOVE.LOVE.LOVE