On the evening of the 30th of the Lunar New Year, the DK1/10 platform in the Ca Mau shallow waters was filled with the sounds of music, singing, and laughter. Officers and soldiers gathered together to sing karaoke, compete in picking democratic flowers, and raise their glasses to exchange New Year wishes.
Thanks to digital satellite television, soldiers on the rig can watch Tao Quan, cultural programs and wait for the moment President Vo Van Thuong reads his New Year's greetings to the people of the whole country.
Since the afternoon, political commissar, Major Pham Van Sinh, said that preparations for the New Year have been completed. As a ritual before New Year's Eve, officers and soldiers cut each other's hair, bathed, and put on their uniforms to participate in the year-end program.
In addition to the pot of banh chung boiled on the evening of the 29th of Tet, the rig also slaughtered pigs and chickens, wrapped ham, cooked meat jelly, pickled onions, cabbage, and added sticky rice to welcome the New Year. The ingredients were transported by the Truong Sa 04 ship of the Naval Region 2 Command more than three weeks ago, along with some food produced by the soldiers. "We try to create the most joyful and fulfilling atmosphere for the soldiers like Tet on the mainland," said Major Sinh.
The political commissar excitedly shared the spring program, but his voice dropped when mentioning the mainland: "We also have to put aside our families and private concerns to stay here to guard and protect the people during Tet. Hometown, wife and children are still the concerns of many soldiers on DK1 rig when Tet comes."
Corporal Nguyen Tan Giau (left) and Senior Lieutenant Nguyen Phung Hai decorate for Tet on the rig on January 17. Photo: Quang Tien
After the New Year's Eve, all officers and soldiers gathered to call their families to inquire about their health and wish them a happy new year. All 15 DK1 platforms had phone signals, making it convenient to connect to the mainland. DK1/10 soldiers said they were luckier than their comrades on other platforms when they could call home via video via the Vinasat system, seeing their wives and children busy visiting their grandparents, shopping, and decorating their homes for the upcoming New Year.
First Lieutenant Nguyen Phung Hai, 40 years old, from Ha Tinh, has only returned home once to celebrate Tet with his wife and children since working on the rig in 2007. Like many other officers and soldiers on the rig, he said he "had to find a way to overcome homesickness, especially during the last days of the year."
His daughter is in eighth grade. In addition to calling her father to ask about his health every day, she also buys him a shirt every Tet holiday. "This year I also bought a gift. When a ship arrives at the rig, I will send it to you," Hai said. In his personal locker at the rig, he keeps a collection of letters from his daughter. He sometimes takes them out to read to ease his longing for her. In a letter to her father during Tet, the girl bragged about her progress in computer science and promised to draw a picture for him when he returns.
Like Mr. Hai, the photo of his three-year-old daughter sent by his wife to the island on the ship was a source of encouragement for Lieutenant Nguyen Van Nghiep, a 28-year-old radar operator from Nam Dinh. At the end of 2019, his wife gave birth while Nghiep was on duty at the oil rig, and he was only able to return to the mainland to visit his family when the child was eight months old.
"Men should be the support for women, but now women are the solid support in the rear so we can work with peace of mind at the forefront," said political commissar Pham Van Sinh, speaking on behalf of the soldiers on the rig.
Senior Lieutenant Nguyen Phung Hai reads his daughter's letter. Video: Hoang Anh
This is also an unforgettable Tet for Corporal Nguyen Tan Giau, who has been on the rig for less than a month. The busy atmosphere preparing for the party on the afternoon of the 30th of Tet makes the new soldier on the rig temporarily forget about missing his mother and lover.
His father passed away, leaving only his mother and older brother at home. His family was in difficult circumstances, so Giau had to be independent since grade 10. Passing the entrance exam to the National Academy of Public Administration, the young man from Vung Tau did many jobs such as serving in restaurants to earn money for his studies. However, Giau could only last the first year, and by the second year he could not continue his studies. He joined the army, and after a year of training, he applied to go to the oil rig.
Corporal Nguyen Tan Giau (appearing at 0:03) and officers and soldiers of DK1/10 platform decorate the space to welcome Tet early. Video: Hoang Anh - Quang Tien
The day Giau left for the oil rig, his girlfriend Le Thi Quynh Nhu, his girlfriend of 5 years, saw him off at the pier. They held hands and Nhu told him that she would take care of his mother in her lover's place so that he could work with peace of mind. He told her to take care of her health and wait for him to return so they could discuss marriage.
"Don't marry a soldier, it's too hard", many officers and soldiers of DK1 rig when asked all have the same answer. However, after all, their spouses are always proud to have husbands who are soldiers on the island. And when they are drifting and lonely at sea, they still remember the hard-working home front with gratitude.
Nguyen Tan Giau with his girlfriend at the port of Brigade 125 in Ba Ria - Vung Tau, before leaving for duty at the oil rig, January 9. Photo: Hoang Anh
Three weeks ago, on the Truong Sa 04 ship, which traveled nearly 1,000 nautical miles to the oil rig in the middle of a stormy sea season, Giau was seasick and bedridden for many days. However, the 22-year-old man said firmly: "I am not afraid of the storms of life, let alone the storms of the oil rig."
DK1 (Economic Services - Science and Technology Cluster) consists of 15 platforms located on the southern continental shelf of the Fatherland, 250-350 nautical miles from the mainland. The tasks of the platforms are to set up lighthouses to notify fishing boats and maritime transport vessels traveling in the area; to set up hydrometeorological research stations; to provide shelter from storms and rescue fishermen; to guard and protect the sovereignty of the southern continental shelf of the Fatherland, and to protect the peaceful exploitation of resources on the continental shelf.
Hoang Anh - Vnexpress.net
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