Dust Child

Dan and his wife, Linda, are flying to Việt Nam. They experience some mild turbulence, and Dan panics: He is instantly trapped in traumatic memories from the time he fought in the war, and he finds it difficult to remain connected to the present moment. The airplane finally steadies, and Dan calms down; he feels ashamed of his anxiety in situations that he finds triggering. Linda, as always, remains steadfast in the face of Dan’s difficulties, which many years earlier had been diagnosed as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The two were engaged before Dan left for Việt Nam, and they married soon after he returned. Dan remembers that he had initially been excited to begin his career as a helicopter pilot in Việt Nam, but once he had been in the country for a month, he realized that the war was truly horrific. On the plane, heading back to Việt Nam with Linda, he recalls the death of his friends and fellow soldiers. He also remembers a Vietnamese woman he knew as “Kim” with whom he’d had a clandestine relationship about which Linda never found out. He wonders if he should have returned with a group of fellow veterans instead of his wife. He knows that his PTSD has been a strain on their marriage, and although he wants to lay his ghosts to rest, he hopes that the trip does not prove too difficult for Linda.

Eighteen-year-old Trang and her younger sister, Quỳnh, are working in the field near their house. Since both girls failed their exams, they did not obtain their high school diplomas. Việt Nam is at war; the girls worry about the helicopters overhead and fear for their safety as they work. Initially, they believed that the communists, led by Hồ Chí Minh, started the war, but now they realize that it was Hồ Chí Minh who defeated the French and that it was really France’s imperialist occupation that had sown the seeds of war. Their father had left to join the ARVN, the army of South Việt Nam, and when he returned, he was physically unhurt but emotionally broken.

Food in the village is scarce, and times are difficult. Hân, who is Trang’s best friend, comes to visit the girls. Hân has been living in Sài Gòn for some time, and although the villagers believe that she has found a “good job” there, she reveals to Trang and Quỳnh that she works as a “bar girl.” Trang is scandalized by the news, even more so by Hân’s suggestion that she and her sister join Hân in the city and become bar girls, too. Hân claims that she earns money by just drinking tea with the American soldiers, but Trang suspects otherwise—she thinks that “bar girls” might actually be sex workers. Quỳnh points out that if she and Trang work in Sài Gòn like Hân, it would help their parents pay off their considerable debt. However, Trang balks at the idea: Her mother instilled a deep respect for “good conduct” in her daughters, and she does not want to engage in work that she views as sinful. However, after some discussion, Trang is persuaded, and the girls decide to accompany their friend back to Sài Gòn. They assure their parents that they will be employed as secretaries in an office, and they set off for the city.

Phong is 12 years old. He lives with Sister Nhã, who is a Catholic nun who worked at Phú Long Orphanage in Sài Gòn. After the war, the two were driven out of the orphanage, and they now live in a small hut in a remote area designated for “bad elements” of society. Since Phong is Amerasian, he is seen as an outsider by the communist government. A massive campaign has begun to turn “outsiders” like him into “productive citizens.” Those sent away to work in the “New Economic Zones” are also subject to re-education and communist indoctrination.

Sister Nhã has fallen ill, and she wants to tell Phong his origin story before she dies. She knows that she is the only one who might be able to provide information that could lead him to his family. She tells him that in February of 1972, his mother placed him in a bag outside the orphanage. He had no clothing or documentation, but he had a large birthmark on his chest. She tells him that if he ever finds a woman he thinks might be his mother, he should ask her about the birthmark.

After Sister Nhã dies, Phong becomes unhoused. He drifts to Sài Gòn, where he joins a gang and engages in petty theft to survive. When he’s 15, he is arrested and sent to a re-education camp. Phong spends two years there before he is released. He feels guilty for abandoning Sister Nhã’s teachings, so he resolves to stop stealing and begins to earn a living by doing various odd jobs. Eventually, he meets a man named Mr. Khuất, who claims that since he was good friends with a Black soldier during the war, he wants to repay the man’s kindness by helping a Black Vietnamese individual. So, Mr. Khuất proposes that he and his wife adopt Phong. Although Phong doubts the veracity of this story, he moves into their home. After a while, it becomes clear that Mr. Khuất only wants to use Phong to emigrate to America. Because of the Amerasian Homecoming Act, the children of American soldiers have been granted permission to relocate to the United States. Mr. Khuất wants to emigrate and intends to pretend to be Phong’s relative. The visa application, unfortunately, fails. The government finds out that the Khuấts are not related to Phong, and because of the lie, the application is denied. The couple angrily kicks Phong out of their home.

Dan and Linda arrive in Sài Gòn and find Thiên, their tour guide. Linda is excited to see the city and has a list of recommendations from the wives of other veterans she knows. However, Dan is disoriented. He recalls returning to the United States after his tour of duty and realizing how unpopular the war was. When people found out that he was a soldier, they harassed him. Even Linda had been to a few anti-war protests, though she was supportive of him. He realized then that he’d been naïve about the war. After years of reading about Việt Nam, he began to understand that the reasons for American involvement in the conflict were imperialist and even racist. The military men in charge of the troops had not placed any value on Vietnamese lives, and the war had been a grave injustice.

When he and Linda reach their hotel, Linda says that the architecture reminds her of buildings she’s seen in Paris. This makes Dan reflect on the role that the French played in the conflict: It was their colonial project that divided Việt Nam and led to the First Indochina War and, later, to the war in which the Americans intervened. Although Linda is struck by the beauty of the country, Dan is lost in thoughts about the war and in memories of his Vietnamese girlfriend, “Kim.” She was pregnant when he left the country, and he realizes that he is duty bound to find his child. He wonders what life has been like for his child, who would be 46 now.

Hân, Trang, and Quỳnh arrive in Sài Gòn. The city is bustling, and Trang stares at the scantily dressed Vietnamese women with groups of American soldiers. Trang and Quỳnh plan to live with Hân until they are able to afford their own lodgings, and from Hân and her roommates (who are also bar girls), they learn more about what they will do in Sài Gòn: The American soldiers purchase drinks for the bar girls in order to engage them in flirtatious conversations, and the girls get paid based on the number of drinks that the men purchase for themselves and for the women. Although the men drink alcohol, the bar girls drink what is known as “Sài Gòn tea,” which is supposed to be a mixture of whiskey and tea but is typically just tea. This saves the bar money and prevents the women from becoming intoxicated.

They meet their boss, the madam of the Hollywood Bar, and choose nicknames for themselves. Quỳnh will call herself Lan, and Trang will be Kim. The madam further explains that if men want to sleep with the bar girls, they must first purchase a ticket from the bar. The girls will be allowed to keep 40% of the money. Horrified, Trang clarifies that she and her sister will not be sleeping with men. The madam roars with laughter, saying that all the girls say that at first, but ultimately, they are unable to resist the allure of extra income.

Trang and her sister return to the Hollywood Bar for their first night of work. They meet Tina, one of the bar’s top earners, who is rumored to have connections to organized crime. Tina immediately dislikes them, leaving Trang concerned for their well-being. Trang sits and drinks with one soldier for a while, but when he leaves, she is approached by another who wants time “alone” with her in one of the bar’s back rooms. Trang does not want to go, but the madam insists.