Making a living at the beginning of the flood season
The early morning rain had just stopped, the water of Vinh Hoi Dong River was flowing, carrying with it a few rows of water hyacinths wandering downstream.
At this time, Mr. Nguyen Van Ba, a resident of Vinh Hoi hamlet, Vinh Hoi Dong commune (An Phu district, An Giang province) pushed his boat and spread his net to catch fish to sell at the market.
Mr. Ba shared: “In the past, the water in the fields was quite good. I used nets to catch 5-7kg of silver carp and silver carp to sell at the morning market, earning more than 200,000 VND/day. It has been raining these days, so the fish have not eaten much, so I only caught a few fish, enough to get by.
All year round, I work hard to earn a living. During the dry season, if I work hard, I can make ends meet. During the flood season, I work hard to earn enough money to send my children to school, and then take care of the family during Tet. You see, it is now the end of June (lunar calendar), and once the flood season is over, Tet will be right around the corner. If I don't work hard from now on, my family will have a very difficult time at the end of the year!"
The flood water in An Giang has just "come to a state of trance"
Talking about his profession, Mr. Ba confided that because his family was poor, his education only stopped at the level of knowing how to read and write.
Growing up, he followed his father's river career and has been with it ever since. He also worked as a construction worker in Binh Duong province and Ho Chi Minh City for a few years, but it was not enough to make a living, so he had to return to his hometown to live with the ebb and flow of the tide.
“Thinking carefully, I went back to my hometown and my life was more comfortable. Returning to the profession of silversmithing, I didn’t have any surplus, but I didn’t go hungry. In my hometown, life was simple, and the burden of food and clothing was lighter than in a foreign land. If I caught a lot of fish, I would sell it at the market, and if I didn’t, I would still have a full meal for my wife and children.
My hometown is poor but there is no shortage of chili and eggplant, because no one in a foreign land gives anything to anyone for free. These days, fish appear more often, so my family's life is better. People who cast nets, they catch young linh fish, so the fields are even better" - Mr. Ba sincerely said.
Fishermen cast nets and catch fish on the river at the beginning of the flood season in An Giang.
Saying goodbye to the simple fisherman, I walked around Vinh Hoi Dong market and saw that there were not many freshwater fish. Some vendors said that Vinh Hoi Dong market has freshwater fish all year round, because they follow the water from Cambodia down, and when they reach the river junction, they become a source of life for fishermen.
Because of the rainy days, there are few freshwater fish, but usually there is no shortage. Or if you want to eat delicious fish, you have to go early in the morning, when the fish are brought from the cages to the market by the vendors. It's just that people from far away like me rarely have the opportunity to go to the upstream market early in the morning.
Not only the upstream fishermen, but also their “colleagues” in the border areas of Tinh Bien and Chau Doc are ready for the new fishing season. These days, the water in Vinh Te canal is close to the banks. In low-lying areas, the water “crawls” into the fields, making the heavy steps of the fishermen sloppy. Below the wharf, several sampans lie still and rest after a tiring journey.
Mr. Tran Van Ut (living in Vinh Te commune, Chau Doc city, An Giang province) is rowing his boat along the river, attentively casting his net to catch fish for dinner. When asked about the current fish output, he smiled gently: "The fish are still scattered, a few kilos a day, not much.
Fortunately, the fish price is high at the beginning of the season, so I can make a living. When the water level in August (lunar calendar) is high, this area is flooded, and the people of the village really enter the fishing season. At that time, I also go on a boat to catch fish from far away. Now I have checked the boat, tested the machine, and patched up some of the holes in the net, waiting for the season to start. Hopefully this year the flood will be big, so I can make up for last year's losses."
Waiting for the flood
Working hard to lift tree trunks firmly planted on the bank of Tra Su canal, Mr. Le Van Can (residing in Nhon Hung ward, Tinh Bien town, An Giang province) happily answered questions from visitors from afar. He said that he was rebuilding a bridge under the wharf to be very sturdy, so that the boat could be anchored securely. Every year, when the water under the canal is dyed red with alluvium, he does this familiar job.
“During the flood season, we go fishing and then return through this wharf, so it has to be high and sturdy to withstand several long months. This year, at the end of June, with this water level, I see a little hope for the new fishing season. Because I only cast nets or go fishing, my life is also precarious. I am old, I am happy with how much I earn, as long as I have a meal to eat so that my children can worry less” - Mr. Can confided.
In the story of the nearly 70-year-old fisherman, the days when fish were weighed by the bushel by his traders are a thing of the past.
Back then, when people didn’t finish all the fish they ate, they made dozens of jars of fish sauce and stacked them along the walkways, or made a few bags of dried fish and put them in the kitchen. Looking back, they were all specialties that no one appreciated back then, because every house had them. Now, fish are becoming rarer and rarer, so Mr. Can is lucky to be able to make a living with this job!
Mr. Can, a farmer in Nhon Hung ward, Tinh Bien town (An Giang province) is looking forward to the new flood season.
“I save the fish I catch for food, and sell the surplus at the market. At this time, it is difficult to sell a few silver carp or silver carp each day. At the beginning of the season, I spread nets and fish until September and October (lunar calendar), then I switch to setting snakehead fish traps. I have collected about a dozen traps, and I have an additional source of income at the end of the season.
Having been attached to this area since I was a child, I have only been stuck with working for hire, doing silver work. This job is very hard. You dive all day and all night, but when you drain the boat, you run out of money. At that time, you have to go find fish and crabs for the following days!" - Mr. Can confided.
Although he knows it is hard, Mr. Can and those who follow the silver fishing profession still look forward to the flood season. There are still years when the net fishermen earn a good income because the flood water brings abundant aquatic products. It is just that the flood water is now unpredictable, so if it is a good year, they are happy, if it is a bad year, they try to dive to have something to eat.
For some fishermen, in addition to diving into the profession, they also raise fish in a "semi-wild" way. Mr. Tran Van Mam, residing in Thoi Son ward (Tinh Bien town, An Giang province) has done this in the past two flood seasons, helping to improve his family's income. "Now I have finished preparing the farming area, in the near future I will buy small fish from the net fishermen, put them in the cages, raise them until October (lunar calendar) then remove the nets.
Thanks to the flood water available, I bought snails to feed, so the cost is also low. Last year, thanks to this method, my family had an additional source of income for Tet. Hopefully this year, the "gods will treat" the fishermen so that we will suffer less, because for the past two seasons, we have been struggling with the situation of making ends meet to get through the flood season" - Mr. Mam sincerely said.
Mr. Mam also said that at this time, he is still driving a motorbike taxi to supplement his family's income, because the fish have not yet come to the fields to lay eggs. Perhaps, in more than a month, when the water "jumps away from the shore", he will put down his traps and get on a boat to find a way to make a living, with the hope of buying new clothes and books for his children to have fun in the new school year.
Although the flood waters are no longer as generous as before, they are still a source of hope for those who follow the silver-mining profession. For many reasons, they choose to live with their “aunt”, accepting their fate of living on the streets, with the hope that the next generation will have a better life in the coming days.
Source: https://danviet.vn/mua-nuoc-noi-an-giang-duoi-song-con-nuoc-da-lu-du-chin-do-dan-cau-luoi-da-bat-duoc-ca-dong-ngon-20240801172449613.htm
Comment (0)