Family of 3 heroic Vietnamese mothers

(Dan Tri) - Living in the resistance zone right in the "steel land" of Cu Chi, Nong's family, from the old to the young, all participated in the revolution. The whole family has 4 martyrs and 3 heroic Vietnamese Mothers.

Heroic Vietnamese mother Kieu Thi Nong is 87 years old this year, living in Dong Lon hamlet, Trung Lap Thuong commune, Cu Chi district, Ho Chi Minh City, still healthy and clear-minded. She boasts that she is still strong enough to clean the house, cook to serve herself, without needing anyone to take care of her. Her voice is still loud, clear, and decisive. It is just that the stories told to visitors sometimes have no beginning or end, patching together small pieces of memories deeply imprinted in the mind, making it difficult to recognize any order or logic. But through those pieces of memory, it is enough to understand her stormy, challenging life. In just 4 years of escalating war, fierce fighting in the Cu Chi resistance zone took the lives of 4 of her relatives. They are Mr. Kieu Van Phi, her biological father, who died in 1968; her husband, Mr. Nguyen Van Leo, who died in 1966; her daughter, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Nang, who died in 1969; Mother's younger brother is Mr. Kieu Van Nieu, who died in 1967. Therefore, her family has 3 Vietnamese Heroic Mothers. They are mother Kieu Thi Nong herself, her biological mother, Mrs. Le Thi Ty, and her mother-in-law, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Ot. Until now, only mother Nong is still alive.

Nong's mother's family were long-time residents of Dong Lon hamlet. During the anti-American resistance war, this area belonged to Trung Lap commune, Cu Chi district, which was a fiercely contested area between the army and the government of the Republic of Vietnam. People in this area had not yet grown up when they joined the revolution. Nong's mother's family was the same. Her husband, Mr. Nguyen Van Leo (alias Tu Dinh), was a supply officer of the Propaganda Department of the Saigon - Gia Dinh Regional Party Committee, serving the printing house located in Sen forest (Ho Bo, Phu My Hung commune, Cu Chi) of this unit. Not only serving the printing house at the base, Mr. Tu Dinh also organized his house into a secret base to support the Supply Department in transporting supplies and weapons. In 1966, during a fierce sweep, the enemy fired artillery at the printing house's base in Phu My Hung, Cu Chi, the printing house's supply bunker was hit by artillery, and Mr. Tu Dinh was buried in the bunker. Nong's mother said: "After the sweep, the enemy surrounded the base for many days, so it was not until four days after my husband died that his comrades went down to the bunker to bring his body up for burial." In 1967, Nong's mother's younger brother, martyr Kieu Van Nieu, a logistics soldier of the Saigon - Gia Dinh military region, also died in a sweep. Mr. Kieu Van Phi, Nong's mother's father, was a local cadre. His house was a place to gather goods for the army, a meeting place for the hamlet party cell, the commune party cell... so it was often attacked by the enemy. Nong's mother and her biological mother, Mrs. Le Thi Ty, were raided and arrested by the enemy many times. Mr. Kieu Van Phi also died in a surprise attack by the enemy while he was having a party cell meeting at home in 1968.

As for her mother's eldest daughter, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Nang (born in 1954), she had just grown up when she joined the revolution, working as a gatekeeper for her parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles to attend meetings, gather supplies... A little older, when she was only 12 years old, martyr Nang officially joined the revolution and was assigned the task of being a liaison, scout, and guiding groups transporting raw materials from enemy areas to our area. On January 14, 1969, after leading a group transporting goods, martyr Nguyen Thi Nang was on her way back when she was caught in a local guerrilla battleground ambushing the 25th Division of the Republic of Vietnam government. In that battle, martyr Nang sacrificed herself when she was not yet 15 years old.

4 years of fierce war, 4 most beloved people sacrificed one after another, mother's tears ran dry in those painful days. If she was not strong enough, mother Nong could not continue her revolutionary activities, while raising her 4 young children and 4 grandchildren of martyr Kieu Van Nieu, who were even younger. Mother Nong said that on the day Mr. Tu Dinh sacrificed, she was pregnant with her 5th child. The eldest daughter Nguyen Thi Nang was only 12 years old at that time, officially following in her father's footsteps to follow the revolutionary path. Mother Nong alone had to work hard to raise 4 children, 4 young grandchildren, and complete the tasks assigned by the organization.

Since she reached the age of marriage, Nong's mother was an important soldier in the family of the Deputy Secretary of the Party Cell of Kieu Van Phi Hamlet, specializing in hiding cadres who came to the house for meetings, hiding, or simply cadres who came to rest on their way to work. Later, when her husband (Mr. Tu Dinh) organized their house into a place to support and supply the Printing House Supply Department of the Propaganda Department of the Saigon - Gia Dinh Regional Party Committee, Nong's mother was also in charge of this facility. When she reached her youth, Nong's mother took on additional secret work, collecting bodies and burying cadres who died in battles that occurred in the locality. From 1961, she took on additional tasks of propaganda, taking care of women's work, purchasing rice for the government of the area occupied by the army, participating in the local security team... Despite such hard revolutionary work, Nong's mother still had to earn a living, ensuring food, clothing, and education for her 8 young children and grandchildren. How many hardships weighed on the shoulders of this small woman, the hardships are hard to measure. Yet, when telling the story of her life, my mother never let out a single word of complaint. Recalling those hardships and pains, my mother seemed to be telling someone else's story, unrelated to her. My mother only said that up to now, her life has been quite stable, with government subsidies to live comfortably in her old age, her children and grandchildren are all grown up, her family is happy, her job is stable with a good income, and she is at ease.

Currently, Nong's mother lives alone in the family's old house, which is both a place of worship and a place to store documents and memorabilia related to the fighting achievements of her father, husband and children. In the large display cabinet, she carefully stores books mentioning the fighting achievements of her family members, death notices, etc. The memorabilia is divided into sections, one for her father, one for her husband, one for her daughter, etc. On the four walls, Nong's mother also divides into small compartments to hang medals, certificates of national merit, certificates of Vietnamese Heroic Mothers, etc. of herself, her biological mother, and martyrs in the family, etc. Occasionally, her children and grandchildren come to visit her. In the summer, she also accepts volunteer students to live with her so that the house has more voices and laughter. During holidays, local authorities and students in the area often come to visit and congratulate her on her health, so Nong's mother is not sad.

Burning five incense sticks, Nong's mother placed them on the altar of her father, mother and husband. She said: "Now that I'm old, I eat frugally and don't need much. I just hope my children and grandchildren are safe and healthy, and that's all I'm happy about." It's just that, sometimes when asked about the battles in which each of my relatives fell, she would change the subject, seeming to forget. But perhaps she remembered it very well. Her eyes were filled with tears, and she looked far away...

Dantri.com.vn