The Story of a Hollow

Heaven has a source and sea

With you and me, what is there to be sad about?

Saying "a hollow place" sounds cumbersome and clumsy, but there is a reason. Visiting Cai Xa Cong port, Ha Phong ward, Ha Long city (Quang Ninh) during storm Yagi, many thoughts linger until today. Thinking about a profession with a long history, about the fate of seafarers yesterday, today and tomorrow. Life never stops, after the rain the sky clears up, mud underfoot but the sun is still above.

Quang Ninh, especially Ha Long, has many place names starting with the word "cai". Looking up more information, I found an explanation: "cai" is a low-lying place, a place to moor boats. Is that why there is an idiom "strange water, strange thing"? Cai Xa Cong can be imagined as a shallow bay like a curved beam, sheltered by undulating mountains bordering the sea. This is the anchorage and landing place of more than two hundred coastal fishing boats and a place to take shelter during storms. In the past, fishermen caught seafood and sold it to tourist boats on the bay. The days of drifting and floating are over thanks to the locality establishing a settlement area so that fishermen have a place to return to.

Minister Le Minh Hoan and a working delegation from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Quang Ninh and Ha Long City inspected the Cai Xa Cong fishing area (Ha Phong ward, Ha Long City) after storm No. 3 Yagi. Photo: Cuong Vu.

After the storms caused by super typhoon Yagi, we are very happy that the people did not suffer any loss of life or property. The faces of the people of the sea are still strong, their smiles still radiate a generous and optimistic spirit. The people believe that partly because of the mountain range, more importantly, the fishermen tied their boats together so they did not collide. Taking the image of "tightly tied boats" that have overcome the storm, we also need to "tie ourselves together" to become a community of people who live on the sea to be able to get rich from the sea. The people are very happy to have a community institution right here in Cai Xa Cong.

In any period, the movement of society is always agile, dynamic, colorful, and difficult to manage one-way by administrative orders from top to bottom, from within the system to life. The management apparatus is often "dynamic", always shifting, while the community is always stable, perhaps one generation succeeds the next. People do not only have the need for food and shelter, but also many other needs: professional activities, social relationships, cultural enjoyment, spiritual life, and integration into the common development.

Minister Le Minh Hoan gives gifts to fishermen after storm No. 3 - Yagi.

Local leaders advocated building Cai Xa Cong into a multifunctional integrated fishing port. According to the planning idea, one side is where ships dock, the other side is a logistics service area, and the other side is a space for experiential tourism. People are very excited to see this policy become a reality soon. However, the shallow channel makes it difficult for ships to enter and exit, sometimes they have to anchor for a long time waiting for the tide to rise before they can enter. In addition, people are also concerned about the cost of each trip to sea, and businesses buy stably at reasonable prices.

Cai Xa Cong is currently not as big as other ports, only for short-bodied, wooden-hulled ships that mainly fish close to shore. Today it is like that, but tomorrow this place will have a modern port like the dream of many people, many generations. The ships will be sturdy, ensuring safety against wind and waves. Infrastructure will be invested in accordance with the marine economic strategy. Conveyor belts will replace human labor. The automated preliminary processing area will create high added value. A space for visitors to experience the life of the sea, the culture of seafarers, and enjoy the products caught and processed by the locals.

Minister Le Minh Hoan sent his regards and encouragement to fishermen.

A modern port with infrastructure is not enough, we need to think about the importance of the "Community-Managed" institution. A strong community is a condition for unions, fisheries agencies, fisheries inspectors, political organizations, and social organizations to approach and be close to fishermen. A strong community is a condition for protecting aquatic resources, eliminating plastic waste for a greener and cleaner marine environment. A strong community is a condition for shifting from a traditional to a modern fisheries industry with the participation of representatives of fishermen as the main actors. Investing in modernizing the fisheries industry is necessary, but investing in people and the community will ensure sustainable development.

Any profession is noble because it brings people a better life. Professional activities are not only for the sole purpose of earning a living, although that is important. People also want to be recognized and respected by society, and to be attached to people in the same profession. Each new port area needs a community space, where people live and study together, where leaders come to visit and listen to people after each trip to the sea. Historical documents about the first steps of the ancestors who opened up this lowland are valuable assets, educating future generations to appreciate more, to be more proud of the efforts of many generations reaching out to sea.

Minister Le Minh Hoan inspected the work of preventing storm No. 3 - Yagi in Quang Ninh.

In a changing world, professions, including fishing, must also change. To change, we must learn to enrich our minds, to know new things, different ways of doing things. Without learning, we will always be stuck with what we already know and how to do things as they are now. Absorbing knowledge helps create new value spaces instead of just focusing on existing values. Mastering skills helps increase labor productivity, and cope with risks and dangers. Forming an attitude of loving the sea and nature helps people love their jobs, live their lives to the fullest, even in the most difficult and stormy times.

The fishing industry will not always accept the ships that are struggling to survive the storms. Fishermen will not always accept to hide in a low place in terms of professional activities and knowledge. The fishing industry will change when fishermen change and are changed, then the lives of millions of fishermen will not only be more prosperous but also happier.

Goodbye everyone, I will always remember the charming landscape, the kind and strong-willed people. I hope to have the opportunity to return to Cai Xa Cong to once again love the sea, love the people whose whole lives are like the ocean!

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Source: https://danviet.vn/cau-chuyen-mot-cho-trung-20240922083004182.htm