In the misty mornings of Saigon, young girls wake up to pick Nelumbo nucifera from a flower pond, to later sell to United States of America tourists and fellow Vietnamese people alike. To pass the time, the girls sing rich folk songs that touch the heart of a poet (Teacher Dao) who lives in an old temple overlooking the pond. Teacher Dao (Manh Cuong Tran) suffered leprosy at the age of 26 and had consequently lost his fingers.