Chopin's heart was always with his native Poland, which he left when he was about 20 years old to relocate to Paris. His last wordon earth was to have his heart brought back to Poland for burial. His wish was fulfilled (nhu nguyen).
Chopin made 17 Polish songs, the first of the collection was given the name Zyczenie, which means Nhu-Nguyen ("Of Wish" in English). That was my name, given to me by my parents, representing the combination of their names, with the switching of the glottal stop, tonal accent, in the Vietnamese language. I got to know Chopin's waltz at age 6, when my father returned to Hue from England. The melody touched my heart, reigned in it, and I never forgot it. I had never heard anything more beautiful in my 6 years of life, as though I had heard it from a place that preceded my 6 years. I was haunted all my life by its beauty. Later, in America, I tried to find the opus number for the piece. A few years ago, during my parents' illnesses, I wrote the Vietnamese lyrics for this Chopin waltz. As of now, I have forgotten the opus number and will have to look for it again.
Below was the composition for voice, Polish song, titled "Nhu-Nguyen" or Zyczenie, in the Polish language:
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