The sound of rooster crowing is the image of the homeland that has penetrated deeply into the hearts of every person. And now in Truong Sa, I hear that familiar sound of rooster crowing echoing in my ears. I am happy to affirm that coming to Truong Sa is like returning to my hometown.
A year before arriving in Truong Sa, on the islands that were all sand and coral, I was amazed by the hanging trellises of aromatic squash, pumpkins and green squash replacing sea spinach covering the ground, and in the distance were banana trees growing rapidly... Now, coming to the islands of Truong Sa, the echoing sound of roosters crowing made us even more excited, feeling like home was right in front of us.
Truong Sa is greener every day
The 2024 "Youth for the sea and islands of the homeland" journey took us to Truong Sa and DK1 Platform. Arriving at the island, the shady trees guided the group to visit, children happily played on their way to school, the sound of children reading in class, the peaceful sound of temple bells echoed in the distance; next to the lush green vegetable beds were the sounds of roosters crowing, ducks squealing, pigs grunting... a homeland of Vietnam always present in the middle of the sea and islands of Truong Sa.
Ms. Nguyen Pham Duy Trang, Secretary of the Central Youth Union, Chairman of the Central Council of Young Pioneers, Deputy Head of the Working Group, Head of the Journey "Youth for the Sea and Islands of the Homeland" in 2024, visited the vegetable garden at DK1/8 Platform
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Just a year ago, meeting again, I saw Truong Sa getting greener every day. Last year, the officers and soldiers humorously boasted that their skin was not dark on the island because of the cool shade of trees covering everywhere. This year, they humorously said that despite the harsh hot weather, they could still eat the vegetables they grew comfortably and could even be eaten in hot pot. They are like that, even though life has to face many difficulties and harsh natural conditions, they are always happy, humorous and full of determination. Just like no matter how dry, barren or harsh it is, the lush green color is always present in the sunny and windy Truong Sa.
Gourds and squashes hang in a place where they don't touch the ground all year round - DK1/8 rig
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The green color today on Song Tu Tay Island made all members of the delegation admire. But it is hard to imagine that about 2 years ago, a big storm passed by and knocked down over 95% of the trees on the island. Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Khuong, Political Commissar of Song Tu Tay Island, said that in order to overcome the consequences of the storm, officers and soldiers were determined and made efforts to rebuild each fallen tree, adding more poles to make the trees strong and sturdy again. In addition, they planted new trees, tried to fertilize, and increased nutrients and soil for the trees to grow well and grow as quickly as possible. "With great determination, after about a year and a half, the trees were basically restored, creating shade, ensuring a cool and fresh living environment for the people, officers and soldiers on the island," Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Khuong shared.
The sound of rooster crowing echoed on DK1/8 Platform
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Chicken and duck on Da Tay A island
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Dear images of homeland in Truong Sa islands
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We arrived on the island on a day at the end of April, but the officers and soldiers here said that it had never rained before Tet. With the harsh weather, the determination and will of the soldiers and people here is even higher. A soldier here said: "This season is really difficult to grow, because it has not rained for a long time. But it is difficult to grow, not impossible". I asked: "So the rainy season is probably easier to grow?", this soldier replied: "The rainy season is also difficult, because vegetables are easily crushed and damaged, plus the waves and wind bring salt water in". "So which season is the best?", I wondered, this soldier smiled and wittily said: "The season... back to shore". Although every season on the island has many difficulties like that, but for those of us who come from the mainland, we are all amazed and admired because the vegetables are fresh and green, many fruit trees produce larger and heavier fruits than when grown on the mainland.
Every day, green shoots always grow on the island.
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Ms. Dinh Thi My Thao, a resident of Song Tu Tay Island, said: "This month is too sunny, so it's a bit harder to grow vegetables, but there are still enough vegetables to eat. If you grow too much, you share it with the soldiers, and if you have extra, you can share it with the people. Here, you can grow many types of vegetables such as water spinach, green cabbage, white radish, squash, pumpkins, and even fruit trees..." Then Ms. Thao boasted: "Life here is harmonious, there are many trees so it's very cool". Not only overcoming the harsh weather conditions, the officers and soldiers here have also become... agronomists, doing their own research to grow plant varieties. On Song Tu Tay Island, every afternoon, a nursery team will go collect casuarina fruits to screen, separate them, and then take the seeds to the nursery. But everyone pays attention to the characteristics of each type of tree to overcome all obstacles. For example, with casuarinas, you have to pick them before 5 p.m. so that the fruits don't turn dark brown. Because according to the soldiers, if the fruit turns dark, it means the seeds will separate and fall to the ground, so when planted, it will not be effective.
Coconut trees are the sentiments sent from the mainland to the islands in Truong Sa. They have been cultivated by officers and soldiers and now the sweet fruits are present.
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Watermelon on the island
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Fruit trees stand tall in the sun and wind of Truong Sa
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Firmly stick to the sea, stick to the island
On floating islands, creating green areas is difficult, and on submerged islands, it is even more challenging. Taking us to visit a lush vegetable garden where land and fresh water are both very limited, Tran Thien Thoai (20 years old), a soldier on Da Thi island, said that water for watering plants is taken from daily water (reserve rainwater). "Every time I wash dishes, I will use salt water to wash first, then rinse with fresh water in the last step. The last water after washing dishes is used to water plants. Or all water such as washing rice, washing vegetables, etc. is used to water plants," Thoai said, adding that although it is sunny and the amount of fresh water is limited, the sea is calm so it is better. On rough days, the sea water rises, condenses into frost that falls and kills plants. Therefore, when the wind is strong, we have to cover more carefully.
A beautiful corner at Sinh Ton Dong Island
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Flowers in bloom
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Green tree-lined streets
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There is no shortage of fruit trees on the island.
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On the submerged island, the conditions are harsher, but gourds, squash, and luffa fruits hang; vegetables are still green; flowers still bloom boldly in the face of wind and waves... Captain Bui Xuan Quoc, Political Commissar of Da Thi Island, affirmed: "In order to stabilize the thinking of the officers and soldiers here, we always try to create a living environment as close to the mainland as possible. To do this well, we create a landscape by planting more trees, vegetables, fruits, and flowers. We create conditions for our brothers to cultivate by themselves to inspire that no matter where they are, no matter how harsh the conditions are, the green color of the mainland still extends to the sea and islands, affirming Vietnam's strong sovereignty".
Soldiers increase production every day
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On An Bang Island, the green color makes us not dare to think that this place was once called Lo Voi Island because it was too hot. Saying goodbye to the island, everyone missed the cool, fresh green and secretly admired the efforts of the growers. On the island, people grow vegetables with their own techniques, which when told, people from the mainland like us would have to say "wow". As Captain Bui Xuan Quoc said, during the stormy sea season, twice a day, officers and soldiers on the island have to use fresh water to wash each leaf of the plant, ensuring that the vegetables do not get salty and the soil is not contaminated with salt. Not only that, Major Nguyen Van Nam, Deputy Political Commissar of An Bang Island, also said that every day the vegetable pots here must always be rotated to cover them, not allowing the wind and sea salt to affect them...
Nurseries on the island
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A very special thing is that at all the current island locations, including DK1 Platform - where the ground is not touched all year round, besides the green trees and fruits, there is still the sound of roosters crowing every day. All the island locations now raise pigs, chickens, ducks... to maintain life no different from the mainland. Each green color that grows, each chicken and pig that is raised in extremely harsh conditions is the presence of the spirit and indomitable will of the army and people at the forefront of the wind and waves.
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