The boy who went to school using his hands became a college student.

(Baonghean.vn) - Upon hearing the news that Luong Van Mau was about to go to Vinh to attend school, relatives and villagers from Minh Phuong hamlet, Luong Minh commune (Tuong Duong district) came to congratulate him. For Mau and his grandmother, many difficulties still lie ahead.

For the people of Luong Minh commune (Tuong Duong district), a mountainous area, Luong Van Mau's (born in 1998) becoming a student at the Viet Duc Vocational Technical College is a miracle. This is because his life has been a series of misfortunes; from birth he suffered from disabilities, with a small stature, deformed limbs, and extreme difficulty in movement.

Moreover, with both his parents imprisoned for drug trafficking and possession, Mau and his older brother had to live with their maternal grandparents. After his grandfather passed away, his elderly grandmother had to work hard alone to support Mau and his brother's education. Despite his disability, relying mainly on his hands to move around, Luong Van Mau was very eager to learn. When he reached school age, he asked his grandparents for permission to go to school with his friends.

Born with a disability, Luong Van Mau attended primary and secondary school primarily using his hands to get to class. (Photo: Archival image)

During his primary and secondary school years, the school was near his home, so Mau could commute to and from school in a single day. At that time, the people of Minh Phuong and Xop Mat villages, as well as his teachers and friends, were familiar with the sight of the boy using his hands to drag his body along the road to class. The journey to acquire literacy was extremely difficult, but he always showed determination, almost never missing a school day.

When he entered high school, since his home was more than 20 km from the school, Luong Van Mau had to rent a room in Hoa Binh town to live in while studying. For the first two years, he managed everything himself, from studying, cooking, and laundry to other daily activities. For a disabled person, this was a huge challenge that was not easy to overcome, not to mention the need to be extremely frugal with daily expenses.

With his parents imprisoned for drug trafficking, Luong Van Mau lived with his maternal grandparents. After his grandfather passed away, his grandmother continued to care for the disabled boy. Photo: Dinh Tuan

Thinking about the future, Mau once again resolved to rise above his circumstances, believing that only education and knowledge could lift him out of poverty and help him find a suitable profession. In his final year of high school, his cousin came to study and live with him, helping with some chores, which eased his burden and allowed him to focus on his studies and consolidate his knowledge in preparation for exams.

Given his health and academic abilities, Luong Van Mau applied to the Electrical Engineering program at Viet Duc Technical Vocational College. He has now received his acceptance letter and is preparing to leave for his studies. Unable to hide his joy, Mau said: “The school just informed me to prepare my belongings and luggage; they will send a vehicle to pick me up in a few days.”

Due to old age and declining health, Mrs. Luong Thi Lan (Mau's maternal grandmother) no longer has the strength to work in the fields and only does odd jobs around the house and garden. Photo: Cong Kien

Mrs. Luong Thi Lan, Mau's grandmother, expressed her worries: "Mau is about to go to Vinh to study, and I'm both happy and worried. Happy because he has the opportunity to continue his education and find a suitable job to support himself. Worried because he's disabled, making travel and daily life difficult, and it's more than 200 kilometers from home. Who will help him when he's sick?"

After saying that, Mrs. Lan tried to suppress a sigh, her gaze drifting towards the Nậm Nơn river during the flood season. Although she didn't say it aloud, we knew she had another worry: the monthly living and educational expenses for Lương Văn Mậu. She was nearing the age of "rarely seen before," her legs could no longer carry her far to the fields, and her back could no longer bend for long enough to weed the rice and corn crops.

Luong Van Mau prepares his luggage to leave for university. Photo: Dinh Tuan

In recent years, as her health gradually deteriorated, Mrs. Lan has mostly worked in the garden, growing vegetables, corn, and peanuts to earn money to cover daily expenses. Now that Mau is going to school in the city, the costs will certainly be very high. Suddenly, her eyes lit up: "For the past 12 years, we've overcome so many hardships, and now there are only 3 more years left, and we'll overcome them too. I hope God grants me enough health to support his education."

While packing his clothes into his backpack, Luong Van Mau shared, "Going to school, I will miss and love my grandmother very much, because she has taken care of me since I was little, and now that she is old, she still has to work hard to support me and my education. I hope that these difficult times will pass quickly so that I can soon find a job to earn money to support her."

Cong Kien - Dinh Tuan