The heartbreaking family situation of a 76-year-old woman raising 3 mentally ill and paralyzed children

We visited Mrs. Nghi's family early in the morning. It was cold. The tiny house in Nam Giang hamlet, Nhan Thanh commune had its gate locked. Mr. Giap (Hamlet Chief), the guide, said: Mrs. Nghi probably went to catch snails. Every day she goes to catch crabs and snails to sell to earn money to support her children. She had to lock the door because if she didn't, her two children would wander around.

This year, at 76 years old, Mrs. Nghi still has to catch crabs and snails every day to feed her children.

We searched for a long time before we found her, wading through the mud and rain to catch snails at the end of the field. When she learned of our sudden visit, she wiped her tears and led us home.

The first thing that caught our eyes was two young men sitting on the doorstep, their eyes staring blankly, their mouths muttering nonsense. On the bed in the house was a girl whose age was hard to guess, her body was very thin and pale. There was nothing valuable in her house except two rickety beds. The house was now in serious disrepair, and every time it rained, the buckets and basins in the house were mobilized to catch the water that leaked everywhere.

It is known that the person lying on the bed is her second daughter - Tran Thi Nga (born in 1983). Nga was born with a disability, no memory, deaf and mute, constantly sick, and "befriended" the bed all year round. The two young men wandering around in the corner of the house are the third son Tran Duc Nghiem (born in 1985) and the fourth son Tran Huu Trang (born in 1985). They were born beautiful as a picture, good at studying and making progress, but after finishing high school, they suffered from mental illness...

Every day, Mrs. Nghi has to take care of her paralyzed daughter who is bedridden.

When asked about the reason for her children's illness, she cried, tears blurring her sunken, dark eyes. It was a long time before she confided in me about her family situation.

She married Mr. Tran Van Chinh in 1978. He was a retired soldier. Mr. Chinh had spent 10 years fighting against the Americans in the B battlefield and was exposed to Agent Orange. She and her husband had 7 children, the first 2 of whom passed away, and the third of whom suffered from the effects of the terrible Agent Orange. The first child was healthy and went to the South to make a living. The youngest child, Tran Van Bay, born in 1992, had a wife and children but his health was poor so he could not support his mother and siblings much.

Mr. Chinh was infected with Agent Orange, was sick and had to go to the hospital frequently, so the burden of the family fell on his wife's thin shoulders. In addition to the 5 sao of contracted rice fields, she had to work hard from planting and harvesting rice, then going to the fields, going to the river to catch crabs and snails to earn money for medicine and rice porridge for her husband and children. It is impossible to describe all the hardships she endured when she was raising her husband and sick children alone.

After her first two children passed away, Mr. Chinh also passed away in 2018 after many years of being bedridden. Her husband's death devastated her, but she still had to hold back her tears and work to support her children.

Ms. Hoa - the old lady's neighbor, tearfully confided: "Taking care of her sick husband and a bunch of disabled children, when she comes home from work, Mrs. Nghi rushes into the kitchen to cook, do laundry and feed each child. Once, she was so overworked and refused to eat that she fainted right in the plowed field. Luckily, someone discovered her in time and took her to the emergency room, otherwise it would have been dangerous. Perhaps no one in the whole commune or district is as miserable as her...".

Mrs. Nghi, her old face covered with wrinkles, choked with sobs: “I have tried my best, but God keeps punishing me, making me exhausted. Now the three children are so sick and we don’t have money to go to the hospital. I’m afraid that if I fall ill again, the whole family won’t know where to go. I just wish I had some money to send my children to get treatment. Seeing them like this makes my heart ache,” she collapsed on the table and sobbed, making us feel sad too.

We would like to record the situation of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Nghi's family to the community. Her family's situation is currently at the end of hardship, unhappiness and tragedy and is in dire need of the community's help. Hopefully, everyone's kindness will help her family overcome this disaster and light up her hope for her children to be treated.

“Currently, Mrs. Nghi’s family is in a very difficult situation. We sincerely hope that benefactors will open their arms to help her family overcome this disaster,” said Mr. Tran Van Giap, Head of Nam Giang Hamlet, Nhan Thanh Commune.

Please send any assistance to Ms. Nguyen Thi Nghi, Nam Giang hamlet, Nhan Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, Nghe An province. Account number: 3606205848224 - Agribank . Account holder: Nguyen Thi Nghi.

Source: https://baonghean.vn/gia-canh-thuong-tam-cua-cu-ba-76-tuoi-nuoi-3-nguoi-con-tam-than-bai-liet-10294464.html