A friend of mine in Dak Lak province has a simple-looking house full of rare decorations.
At the entrance is a frog figurine with a coin made from rare wood in his mouth intended to divert misfortune and bring good luck. Stepping inside, there is a shiny and firm scythe made of ironwood, and two tall ancient vases made of barian kingwood situated on two sides of an altar. Nearby there is a God of Wealth statue made of Artemisia.
My friend has spent from a few tens to hundreds of millions of dong on his exquisite collection. According to him, those products, made of rare wood, will not lose their value but will fetch higher prices when resold.
His story reminds me of a previous business trip I took to the central highlands of Vietnam and saw items made of rare wood in several hotels and private houses.
At the hotel I stay at in Gia Lai province, I can see the luxury of two tall vases brought directly from Cambodia and a stuffed tiger glaring and showing its claws inside a glass case.
The hotel owner told me that in addition to the tiled floors and wooden furniture made of rare wood, he also exhibits a collection at his private house.
My friend in Dak Lak and the hotel owner in Gia Lai are indirectly promoting a campaign to kill nature. With a desire to possess expensive items, people might uproot a century-old tree to bring home, or hunt for and dig up precious roots. Killing nature in such ways is sadly equivalent to killing yourself and your fellow human beings.
Nowadays, in the race to accumulate wealth, some people have neglected to consider the harmony between human and nature. Why do they need to throw money out the window and force nature to serve them and their superstitions?
Endangered creatures and rare wood is disappearing from the forests,only to appear at the private houses of people who want to show off their wealth. Why do we only blame wood smugglers when nature takes its revenge and catastrophes rain down on us?
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