Simple happiness of a teacher

(Baonghean.vn) - The gifts Sen told me about, I heard as if they came from my school days in the 90s, some caught chickens, some brought eggs and bouquets of chrysanthemums, roses, dahlias... to give to her on November 20th.

Ethnic minority students in Nghe An give flowers to congratulate teachers on November 20. (Photo: Duy Khanh - Ky Son)

1. This morning, my friend showed off a batch of beautiful green, red, purple, and yellow sticky rice balls, saying that they were for her son's teacher. The sticky rice balls were sweet, fragrant with the smell of ginger and honey, suitable for the slightly chilly weather at the end of the year. I'm sure the teachers had a happy afternoon. Of course, there were plenty of envelopes, all parents were like that, so I had to be too. If not, the envelopes would definitely be supermarket gift certificates, but what would the teacher like as a gift?

She is a fellow countryman I met by chance in a group of friends who were all from Nghe An. Once, when we were talking, she bragged that when she had just graduated from school, she went to teach in Nam Dan. One day, her parents brought gifts to her teacher, the gifts were two peach guava trees that were full of small fruits. Her parents said that they had nothing at home but a few guava trees, so she shouldn't complain. This guava tree had the most fruit, so she gave it to her. She would take care of it for another 2-3 months and it would be ready to eat. While talking and working, her parents took the initiative to plant two guava trees in front of her house for her teacher. That year, the guava season was full of fruit, the fragrance was strong, and sparrows came in flocks, chirping around the garden. There were so many guavas that the teachers in the school couldn't finish them all, so they called the students to come pick and eat them. And the students didn't come empty-handed, but brought apples and oranges from their garden, and when they came to her house, it was as if they were having a party. That was one of the best memories of my friend's time teaching.

2. She is the younger sister of a friend, I met her when she was very small, as small as a candy. After graduating from Vinh Pedagogical University, she went to Saigon to teach, but when she had the opportunity, she returned to her hometown, to the Western region of Nghe An. Because students are from the mountains, life in the mountains is not like in the city. From her teaching place to her home is nearly 400 kilometers, many of the forest roads are difficult to travel. She is small, gets carsick... all kinds of difficulties on the trip home. Friends and many people say it is "hard to understand", but listening to her story, I understand...

Students of Nam Can border commune (Ky Son) give flowers to their teachers on November 20. Photo by Lu Phu

She said, yesterday afternoon, the teacher and nearly 30 students were busy cutting paper to decorate the room in time for the holiday. Suddenly, they ran out of glue. The teacher was busy so she asked the fastest kid to run to her room, take the money she put in her bag to buy glue. A moment later, he ran over, panting: "Teacher, your bag has too many compartments, I didn't dare to open it randomly. When I opened the first compartment, I saw a lot of money. I took out a 100 bill, teacher." Then, at nearly 2 o'clock, the teacher returned to her room and couldn't find her bag. She frantically searched for it. It turned out that after taking the money, the kid hid her bag on the bed and covered it with a blanket to prevent thieves from stealing it, even though the door was carefully locked.

I told him, the other day a student whispered, "Teacher, I have something to ask you. My dad bought me a ceramic bowl, but a friend borrowed it and broke it. My friend's family is very poor so I didn't ask him to pay for it. Today, my dad came to visit me, and he asked about the bowl, I told him, and he scolded me. The bowl cost 30 thousand, and I definitely didn't want to ask my friend to pay. How about my friend pay me 15 thousand, and I contribute another 15 thousand to buy another bowl so my dad won't ask again next time?" The teacher listened and felt sorry, most of the students here are poor, but the poor love the poor more. She said: "Okay, I'll give you one of my bowls." "Thank you, teacher, but I don't dare take it." After saying that, the boy ran away. It turned out that he told her because he only wanted to share.

Teacher Sen - the little sister that I always want to hear her share sweet stories at the DTNT school, she said: "Sister, being close to the children, living with their innocence, warmth, and honesty is a great gift for the teacher". Sometimes Sen brags that she received sticky rice as a gift today - a dish of fragrant rice with the smell of new sticky rice, new rice, and the smell of kitchen smoke. Today she received a melon, today in front of the teacher's room hung a bouquet of wild flowers that the students picked and tied themselves in many colors...

The gifts Sen told me, I heard as if they came from my school days in the 90s, the children caught chickens, the children brought eggs and bouquets of flowers in all colors of chrysanthemums, roses, dahlias... all kinds to give to her on November 20th. Those days were so simple, but on November 20th, she was happy and excited. That joy spreads until now, decades later when she met her students again, she still mentioned it with a sparkling happiness. Once when visiting her in Ba Lan Hospital (currently Nghe An General Hospital), she held the hands of her students, boasting to the surrounding patients: Those are her students, after nearly 30 years, they still come to her.

A gift for her would be meaningless without a heart full of love and respect.

Vo Thu Huong