'Tin soldier' ​​from Nghe An goes to school on his friend's back for 3 years

Cruel fate

Nguyen Manh Chien (14 years old) sits in the front row of class 9D - Dien Ky Secondary School (Dien Chau). Entering the classroom, it is easy to recognize Chien because his head is almost level with the backpack next to him, lost among the growing friends sitting around him.

The student desk became too big, every time Chien had to reach up and lean on the desk to write.

With a height of just over 1m and a weight of about 14kg, Chien has a small stature compared to his peers. Fate has challenged him with a disability since birth.

“I don’t know what illness I have, I just know that since I grew up, my back, arms and legs are not like my father, mother and siblings. My friends in the neighborhood are getting taller and taller, running around everywhere, but I am still so small, I can’t even get out of the house by myself,” Chien tearfully recounted.

With a height of over 1m and a weight of about 14kg, Nguyen Manh Chien is lost among the friends sitting around him.

Chien's father, Nguyen Van An (43 years old), said that the day he was born, holding his baby in his arms, he immediately noticed something different, his arms, legs and back were curved, unlike a normal child. "My wife and I tried to find a way to make ends meet, selling all our assets, borrowing more money to take our child to hospitals, hoping for a "miracle" to help him have a normal body, but in the end we had to accept disappointment...", he said.

As he grew older, Chien's body became more and more deformed because his spine was curved and crooked, his arms and legs did not develop, he was as thin as a dry stick, movement was extremely difficult, his back was increasingly bent down. Therefore, there were times when An and his wife did not want their child to grow up, because as he grew older, his illness became more and more serious, sadness and worry filled their hearts.

The couple named their son Manh Chien with the hope that their disabled son would have enough strength to overcome the harshness of fate, enough determination to overcome the hardships of life. Raising a disabled child, besides love, the father and mother must have more patience, endurance and sacrifice. The work of farming and trading is always busy, rushing back and forth to raise 4 young children, but the parents still devote all their love to Chien.

Throughout his school years, Chien has always received attention and help from his teachers.

On nights when Chien had pain attacks, unable to move his whole body, his parents stayed up all night to massage and comfort their unfortunate child. Although he was young, Chien already felt the harsh reality and the hardships of his parents. He could only bury his head in the pillow and sob, and his parents cried too.

When Chien was 5 years old, his parents took turns helping him learn to walk. Each step was excruciatingly painful, as if hundreds of needles were piercing his skin and flesh, the pain reaching to the bones, causing his feet to bleed and bruise. The first steps of his life, the boy had to grit his teeth and endure the pain. After practicing for a long time, he was finally able to walk, but his feet could not be straightened, he had to tiptoe by using his 10 toes to support himself on the ground.

So, he couldn't walk more than 3 steps before falling down, and every time he fell, he felt pain all over his body, so much so that he cried. To avoid falling, he had to follow the wall or use his hands to hold onto objects nearby, but in the end, he still couldn't have steady steps with his own two feet.

The journey is not alone

At the age of 6, the neighbors' parents bought books and clothes for them to enter first grade, and Chien also asked his parents to buy them. In their hearts, An and his wife never thought of sending Chien to class, because it was very difficult, too much for a child with a curved spine and unable to move on his own. The child's pleading tears fell, and the couple could not hold back their tears, they hugged their child, and all three of them cried, unable to remember how many times they cried.

Nguyen Manh Chien's academic performance is classified as good, studying all subjects equally. That result is not only due to his own efforts and the care of his teachers but also the companionship and support of his close friends.

A few days later, Chien was taken to school by his father. From then on, An and his wife took turns taking their son to and from school, regardless of the scorching sun or the pouring rain and the freezing cold. There were days when the weather was bitterly cold, the wind howled in gusts, carrying their small child shivering in the back of the bike, Nguyen Thi Loan (Chien's mother) suddenly burst into tears...

Luckily, Chien went to school and met enthusiastic, dedicated and kind teachers. They helped him practice each stroke of the pen and taught him each math problem so that he could keep up with his classmates. Fortunately, the boy was always diligent and hard-working, obedient and polite, so everyone loved him. Teachers and friends called Chien "the tin soldier" because of his determination and spirit of overcoming difficulties, his weak body still overcoming to explore and acquire knowledge.

Chien recalls: “In first grade, I mainly practiced writing and doing math. The hardest part was practicing writing because my hands were difficult to stretch and bend, so writing was painful. Whenever I held the pen, it slipped. When I did, my writing was scribbled and not straight. The teacher always stood by my side, holding my hand and guiding each stroke. Gradually, I was able to write neatly and in a straight line, and my fingers didn’t hurt as much anymore.”

For over 3 years, before and after each class, Chien was carried by his two close friends, Phan Ngoc Tam Doan and Nguyen Van Trinh, from the school gate to the classroom and from the classroom to the school gate so that his relatives could take him home.

Over the past 8 years, Chien has continuously achieved the title of Advanced Student. Ms. Nguyen Thi Lien - Principal of Dien Ky Secondary School said: "Chien is an intelligent and hard-working student, he learns lessons quite quickly, during recess, his classmates often ask Chien to guide them in doing exercises and explain difficult parts of the lesson."

Chien still remembers clearly, more than 3 years ago - the first days of 6th grade, when his father had just taken him to the school gate, a friend leaned over and said: "Let me carry you to class!". Then another friend came up: "Let me help you carry your backpack and books!".

Chien's biggest wish is to continue his studies to find a suitable job in the future.

Two classmates who helped Chien were Phan Ngoc Tam Doan and Nguyen Van Trinh.After that time, the two boys took turns helping their friend until now.

When asked about the road ahead, Nguyen Manh Chien confided: "I will try to study better to not let everyone down and study further to find a suitable job in the future." I hope that the dream of the "tin soldier" will come true to continue to sow love and faith in life!