The lives of the shortest family in Vietnam

Born normal, grew up short

It is not difficult to find Mr. Pham Van Tien's house (born in 1964, residing in hamlet 3, Phuc Thang commune) in Phuc Thang commune, Phuc Thang commune, because his family is very famous in the area because... there are many short people.

Mr. Pham Van Tien waters the vegetable garden.

Inviting Giao thong Newspaper reporters to sit down on the porch, Mr. Tien, who is less than 80cm tall, said that if counting his deceased eldest brother, Pham Van Thiem, his extended family has 10 dwarfs. Among them are his father (Mr. Pham Van Thiem, deceased), 3 sons, 2 daughters, 2 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren of Mr. Thiem. Those who carry Mr. Thiem's ​​dwarf gene are all less than 1m tall.

The rest of Mr. Thiem's ​​extended family has 2 children (1 male, 1 female) and 2 grandchildren (1 boy, 1 girl) who are of normal height. "These tall grandchildren must have foreign genes, because my mother, my wife, and my son-in-law in the family are all of normal height," said Mr. Tien.

According to Mr. Tien, his father (Mr. Thiem) was born into a normal family, except for Mr. Thiem, who was only "as tall" when he was 3 or 4 years old and did not grow any taller. When he reached adulthood, Mr. Thiem was about the same height as a 3-year-old boy, less than 80cm. However, the chance to play the flute well helped Mr. Thiem "enchant" Mr. Tien's mother, Mrs. Mo, from Hai Hau.

"My mother used to tell me that my father was ashamed of his short and ugly appearance, so every night he would go to the beach to play the flute and the guitar. One day my mother came from Hai Hau to attend a wedding, heard the flute and fell in love, then she took the initiative to find my father and they got married," Mr. Tien shared.

Each person has a destiny

Thanks to hard work and love for each other, Mr. Thiem and his wife had a simple, peaceful life. Of their 7 children, 5 (Mr. Thiem, Mr. Tien, Mr. An, Mrs. Vui, Mrs. Mung) had Mr. Thiem's ​​genes, growing normally at birth and then not growing any taller at the age of 3 or 4. Only Mr. Toi and Mrs. Loi were of normal height.

Mr. Tien and his wife and children.

Besides Mr. Thiem, the eldest son (who died before getting married), Mr. Loi and Mrs. Loi, who are tall, have married normal people, and none of their children have the dwarf gene.

The remaining five children of Mr. Thiem had the dwarf gene, but only Mr. Tien was as lucky as his father when he married a tall and healthy Mrs. Le. They had three children, Toan and Luan were also short like their father and grandfather; the youngest daughter followed her grandmother and mother's genes, and was of normal height. Mr. Tien's second son married a tall woman, but gave birth to a daughter who was also short like her father.

Mr. An, a short man, also married a tall woman and had a normal son, but his wife has now left him. Mrs. Vui and Mrs. Mung, being short, did not marry. However, Mrs. Mung had a son named Huy. The whole family lived together, supported each other and helped each other in life.

Short but not short-tempered

Mr. Tien proudly shared that although his family has many short people, they are all hard-working and have many talents. Perhaps because they are "short but not short-minded", the "dwarfs" are still admired by girls for their heart and ambition to rise up and so they fall in love with them. From there, they can still get married, have children, and take care of their families.

Mr. Pham Van Tien talked with Mr. Dinh Xuan Thanh, a labor and social officer of Phuc Thang commune.

"My father used to be a talented fisherman. In this coastal village, he was known as the "number one fish killer". Every night, my father and many other fishermen in the village would set up their boats to fish for a bunch of vegetables and a bowl of rice. My father was most afraid of catching... big fish. Once, a fish weighing more than 30kg bit the hook, pulling the boat and my father out to sea. The boat capsized, luckily a nearby fisherman saved us," Mr. Tien said.

Following the example of Mr. Thiem and Mr. Mo, his children worked hard. The front garden was a beach, and thanks to the dwarf family's hands, the corn and potatoes were green and lush. The thatched house was exposed to the sea breeze all year round. Life was simple, but full of laughter.

In the "dwarf" family, there are Mr. An and two brothers, Toan and Luan (Mr. Tien's sons), who are talented and follow the circus profession. Working with the circus troupe is hard work and the income is also low, so recently, Mr. Luan has separated and gone to sell lottery tickets on the street in Saigon.

However, despite their efforts, due to their short stature, the health of the extended family members is also weak, with many illnesses. Mr. Tien is no longer healthy enough to be friends with the sea every day to support his family. Tormented by colon disease, he has stayed home to look after his grandchildren for many years. Mrs. Nguyen Thi Le, Mr. Tien's wife, also has a bladder tumor and uterine prolapse. She still works hard every day doing odd jobs in the village and taking care of 7 sao of rice.

Mrs. Pham Thi Mung, Mr. Tien's sister, was fortunate to have a son named Huy, who is now 14 years old, but unfortunately, he has the same illness as his mother. His legs are crooked and he has stopped growing taller. Whenever the weather changes, he gets sick all the time.

"We also know that with this strange genetic disease, it is difficult for us and our children to be healthy. But since we are born into this world, we will try to find every job to work as long as we can. We only wish to be examined and treated to know about our family's strange disease, so that we can find a way to avoid or treat it so that future generations do not get it again," Ms. Mung confided.

Talking to Giao Thong Newspaper reporter, Mr. Dinh Xuan Thanh, a labor and social officer of Phuc Thang commune, said that Mr. Tien's extended family's situation is very difficult, many people have rare diseases, born normally but when they grow up, they cannot grow taller.

The local authorities are also very concerned and have completed procedures for Mr. Tien and his three younger siblings living in the locality to receive social benefits at the rate of 750,000 VND/month.

"One of Mr. Tien's children has also received social benefits of 750,000 VND/month, and the rest are in the process of applying for monthly social protection benefits as a disabled person for another child and a grandson of Mr. Tien," said Mr. Thanh.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/nhung-phan-doi-o-gia-dinh-lun-nhat-viet-nam-192241010190046813.htm