When nostalgia wins over fear

' I just need my mom'

On February 17, VTC News was present at the house of Mrs. Ho Thi Tuyet (born in 1968, grandmother of Vo Nguyen Thai Bao - a 10-year-old boy who intended to cycle from Phu Yen to Binh Duong to find his mother) in My Hoa neighborhood, Hoa Hiep Bac ward, Dong Hoa town, Phu Yen.

The shabby house with corrugated iron roof and unplastered walls behind the house is where Mrs. Tuyet, Bao and Bao's two sisters live.

When she heard someone knocking at the door, Mrs. Tuyet groped her way out to invite the guest. The complications of the unfortunate electric shock made it difficult for her to walk.

Since the day his mother went to work far away, Bao cried every night because he missed her.

Hearing his name, little Bao ran to greet us and took a seat next to his grandmother. Bao is currently a 4B student at Ly Tu Trong Primary School. The skinny, dark-skinned 10-year-old boy with the story of searching for his mother touched many people.

After a few moments of shyness with strangers, Bao recounted his journey to find his mother from Phu Yen to Binh Duong with only a bicycle and 150,000 VND.

Bao's mother is Vo Thi Thu Hang (34 years old), a worker in Binh Duong province. Due to difficult economic conditions, it has been 3 years since Bao was able to see his mother during Tet, but only for 2 days.

"Mom came back on the 4th day of Tet to take me out and eat, but on the 6th day she had to go back to work" - Bao said.

When his mother left, Bao missed her and stayed up all night. The next morning, he missed his mother even more. Bao sat there absentmindedly, ignoring his friends' invitations to go out. Then the thought of looking for his mother flashed through the 10-year-old boy's mind.

And then, no matter how far the journey was, and not knowing how the road from Phu Yen to Binh Duong would be, Bao decided to pack up and cycle to find his mother.

" I just wish I could stay with my mother a few more days before the end of Tet holiday ," Bao said sadly.

Once, I heard my grandmother say that my mother was in the South, so I went there. My luggage for the trip was a bicycle, 2 bottles of mineral water and 150 thousand dong in lucky money.

At 5pm on February 16 (the 7th day of Tet), Bao left home. Every 3km, Bao asked passersby: "Miss, where is the way to Binh Duong? " Some people thought Bao was joking so no one pointed, some said " just go straight ".

When arriving at Highway 29 (in Da Ngu quarter, Hoa Hiep Nam ward), 10km from home, Bao stopped to ask for directions. Afterwards, Bao was taken to the police station by local people and handed over to his family.

Seeing her grandchild again, Mrs. Tuyet could only hug her grandchild tightly and cry.

“When I went to the temple, Bao was at home packing his things, so I didn’t know. When I came back, I couldn’t find him, so I reported it to the authorities. Bao said if anything happened to me, I wouldn’t be able to survive,” said Ms. Tuyet.

When asked: " Are you scared and tired when traveling like that ?" Bao quickly replied: "I miss my mother, as long as I have my mother, all fear is nothing. I plan to buy food when I'm hungry, and sleep on the street when I'm sleepy."

Sharing with VTC News over the phone, Ms. Vo Thi Thu Hang (Bao's mother) said that for the past 6 years, Bao's father has been gone forever, she has had to shoulder the burden of raising her children, fortunately with support from her grandmother.

Life was difficult, so she went to Binh Duong to work as a worker in a shoe factory. " Although I miss my children very much, with my small salary, I cannot visit them often," said Ms. Hang.

When she heard that her son was cycling to find his mother, she cried without words, wanting to go home to see him but could not because of work. “I called him all night to comfort him. I told him that I would try to visit him often so he should not go like that anymore, it was very dangerous. Luckily, Bao was discovered early by the people and brought home, otherwise if anything had happened to him, I would have regretted it for the rest of my life,” Ms. Hang confided.

Grandmother and grandchild depend on each other to get through the day.

When asked about her grandchildren's situation, Mrs. Tuyet, with tears in her eyes, recounted the difficult days of raising her grandchildren when their parents broke up.

Ms. Tuyet gave birth to 4 children. Her husband died nearly 30 years ago when the children were still young. She raised her children by herself and got married.

Mrs. Tuyet's eyes filled with tears as she told about the children's situation.

6 years ago, Bao's father disappeared, leaving Bao and Vo Nguyen Tram Anh (15 years old, Bao's older sister) to be raised by Mrs. Tuyet, while Ms. Hang went to the South to make a living.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected Ms. Hang's work, so for the past 3 years her income has been very low and she has not been able to return home to visit her children during the holidays.

Feeling sorry for her grandchildren who were disadvantaged and lacking affection, Mrs. Tuyet tried her best to work hard. Every day, she made tofu to sell, and also peeled onions for hire to earn extra income to support her grandchildren's education.

However, 3 years ago, while working, Ms. Tuyet was electrocuted, resulting in multiple injuries and had to stay in bed. Since then, all the burden of work has fallen on the school-age children.

Living with Mrs. Tuyet is her niece Vo Thi Thu Hong (13 years old), the daughter of Ms. Hang's younger sister. Every morning at 8pm, the children make tofu to sell, while Bao sells sticky rice and then goes home to go to school.

“Now that I am old and weak, my grandchildren and I rely on each other to get by. They are very obedient, study hard and help with housework, ” said Ms. Tuyet.

The leader of Dong Hoa Town People's Committee said that Ms. Ho Thi Tuyet's family is a near-poor household in the locality. Ms. Tuyet was electrocuted so her health is not good, she lives with her 3 grandchildren.
After learning about the incident, the People's Committee of Dong Hoa town will work directly with the Department of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs and related units to encourage the family, develop support plans, and create favorable conditions for Bao in life and study.

MINH MINH

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