The sacrifice of the wife of the "standing poet"

(Baonghean) -Coming to Trap village, Quynh Lap commune (Hoang Mai town, Nghe An), everyone knows Mr. Truong Quang Thu, who is famous throughout the region with the nickname "standing poet". After many "winds and waves", he has had "passionate love of life" poems and a complete home. But few people know that behind that "standing poet" is a wife with great sacrifice and extraordinary willpower, she alone worked hard to raise her disabled husband and 3 children.

Fairy tale love storyh

Truong Quang Thu was born in 1951 in a family of 11 siblings. From a young age, Thu was known for being a good student, talented in writing poetry and literature, and had many articles published in newspapers. However, after finishing high school, Truong Quang Thu was forced to put aside his dream of studying and follow his parents' footsteps to make a living.

When he was 21 years old, disaster struck the life of young man Truong Quang Thu. While going to the forest, Thu accidentally got hit by a bomb fragment and was injured in the leg. Although the wound was small, due to subjectivity, it became infected and complicated, leading to paralysis of the spine. At that time, although the family was poor, Thu's parents still tried to run from place to place in the hope of curing their son's illness, but in vain. From a healthy young man, full of dreams and ambitions, Thu became disabled, stiff as a log and lying in one place.

Poet Truong Quang Thu and his wife with their grandchildren

In 1976, although not expecting much, Thu's parents still took him to Ha Bac Hospital (old - now Bac Giang) for treatment. During his days in the hospital, fate made Truong Quang Thu meet a female student of Nguyen Thi Ni Technical College. That day, Mrs. Ni accidentally visited a schoolmate in the same room in the hospital with Thu. Through a few polite conversations and inquiries, the image of a young man with a gentle face, easy to speak but unable to walk left a strong impression on the heart of the female student Nguyen Thi Ni.

Every time she visited her friend in the hospital, Ni saw that Mr. Thu could not walk, had difficulty living, and that no one in the family was there to help, so she volunteered to take care of him. At first, it was just sympathy for a person with a disadvantaged fate, but gradually, her love blossomed into a great love, and she fell in love with the disabled young man without realizing it.

Seeing Ni's concern and thoughtful care, Thu also vaguely realized the girl's feelings for him. And for a long time, Thu had secretly loved that girl who was both beautiful and virtuous, but he did not dare to confess. Being handicapped, he did not dare to hope that the healthy and beautiful girl would accept his love. Moreover, Thu also thought a lot, if he said it and she accepted, he would make his lover suffer, so he kept delaying.

Pouring a cup of tea to invite his guest, poet Truong Quang Thu recalled: “One time, I intended to express my feelings to ease my heart, but I did not dare to expect any response from her. At that time, a disabled person like me did not dare to ask her directly: “Do you love me? Do you agree to be my wife?” After much hesitation, he only opened his mouth to ask a question that did not get to the beginning or the end: “Do you agree to be the daughter-in-law of Nghe An?” and then fell silent. Listening to Mr. Thu tell the story, Mrs. Ni shyly scolded her husband: “What kind of person is normal, poetry flows like a stream, but when it comes to confessing love, she cannot say a word.”

Mr. Thu heard his wife say that and chuckled: "Well, you understand my situation at that time." Then he continued. At that time, without making him wait long, Mrs. Ni told him that she was willing to be by his side and share all the difficulties in life with him no matter how disabled he was. Hearing those things, Mr. Thu was so happy. During the years of living with a disability, he never dared to dream that one day he would be able to propose and be reciprocated. But just as happiness began to blossom, Thu encountered fierce opposition from his lover's family. When she learned that her daughter loved a disabled man, Ni's mother advised her not to and declared that she would disown her daughter if she married Thu. Luckily, Ni's father was a sympathetic person: "You are an adult now, I respect your decision. But remember, no matter how happy or miserable you are in the future, you have to bear it yourself."

Ignoring her mother's strong objection and advice, in 1977, Ni became a daughter-in-law in Nghe An.

Happiness sprouts

When they first got married, the couple's life was extremely difficult and miserable. The peak of that difficulty was when their first son, Truong Quang Van, was born. All of Truong Quang Thu's joints were damaged, so he was almost confined to one place, with great difficulty moving, and his wife became the main pillar of the family. He said that there were times when he saw his wife's hardships and he felt so sorry for his wife that he cried.

Every day, from 3 to 4 am, she got up to go to work for the cooperative. At noon, she went to the forest to collect firewood and buffalo dung to fertilize the small vegetable garden that her grandparents cultivated at home. In the evening, when the cooperative's work day was over, she went to the sea to dig clams, improving the family's meals.

The house is near the sea so it is almost always stormy. While other wives have husbands to take care of the house, she has to take care of everything when a storm comes. One night when she was sleeping, it rained heavily, the wind was strong, the house was in danger of being blown off the roof, Mrs. Ni had to get up and use a ladder to climb up to the roof to protect it. On the day the three-room house was built to avoid storms, she also carried loads of soil to pour the foundation every night, and moved bricks, lime, and mortar to build a small house to shelter the whole family.

As the breadwinner of the family, she never had a moment of rest. The three times she gave birth, she worked until her last day. That woman had to work hard and suffer every day, but the day of giving birth was also hard, all three of her children were born on the street. After giving birth, she did not dare to rest for a day, she was busy taking care of farming and market affairs. Sometimes she bought fish and shrimp from the sea to sell in the highlands to make a profit, then bought cassava from the highlands to boil and bring to the market to sell. Many times, she had to "risk her life" by illegally making alcohol and raising pigs. Mrs. Ni recounted: "Once the government came to check, caught her red-handed making illegal alcohol and called the commune to fine her, it's been terrifying until now."

In Quynh Lap commune, Truong Quang Thu and his wife are the only family that has raised 3 children to go to university and become successful. For a normal family, that is a source of pride, but for a "special" family with a hard-working woman who "raised 3 children and 1 husband", it is a miracle. Having passed the age of 60, the greatest happiness of the couple is that all 3 sons have passed exams and have stable jobs. The eldest son, Truong Quang Van, graduated from the Hanoi University of Social Sciences and Humanities and is working at the District Education Department. The second son, Truong Quang Chuong, graduated from the Military Academy and is working at the Information Command. The youngest son, Truong Quang Phuong, graduated from the University of Fisheries and is working in Dong Nai. Mr. Thu's two eldest daughters-in-law are working at the Quynh Lap Leprosy and Dermatology Hospital.

Poet Truong Quang Thu said that in this world, it is difficult to find a woman who is as selfless and loves her husband and children as his wife. As the main breadwinner in the house, whenever there is a delicious meal, she quietly picks it up for her husband and children. Her selfless sacrifice makes the people of the coastal fishing village of Quynh Lap surprised and exclaim in admiration...

Article and photos: Duy Ngoi