A competition, a beautiful chapter in history, a place where President Ho Chi Minh visited.

Strolling along the wide, two-way asphalt road lined with lush green trees, my heart swelled with joy. Heading straight towards the Ho Chi Minh Memorial House, Mr. Vu Minh Thao recounted the opening day of the memorial house 30 years ago (in 1991). The cheerful story suddenly brought back memories of thirty years ago – a place that marked a beautiful chapter in the history of the Fatherland Front of Yen Thanh district, and also a beautiful memory in my professional life.

President Ho Chi Minh working with the leaders of Vinh Thanh commune on December 10, 1961. (Archival photo)

It was in early October 1991, when I was Chairman of the Fatherland Front Committee of Yen Thanh District, that I proposed, together with the collective, and successfully organized the "Traditional Storytelling Contest," coinciding with the 30th anniversary of...Uncle Ho visited Vinh Thanh commune.This is an outstanding example of the socialist North in agricultural production and the implementation of the "Tree Planting Festival" as called for by President Ho Chi Minh. The competition attracted participation from people of all ages and social classes in the district. Villages and communes competed with each other in practicing singing, dancing, and storytelling. In particular, contestants shared their own stories about their journeys participating in economic and political events supporting the revolution in response to the call of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh during the two national resistance wars. Many elderly people over 70 registered to tell their stories. Some recounted the day they marched with the entire population to the district headquarters to seize power in 1945, others shared stories of their participation in the "Golden Week" and their efforts to encourage others to join in,...

As I recalled that memory, Mr. Vu Minh Thao continued: “Back then, the leaders of Vinh Thanh commune were very enthusiastic. They planned and assigned specific tasks to various forces and mass organizations, from repairing and upgrading the roads in the commune, especially the road leading to the Ho Chi Minh Memorial Area. What was most surprising was that people from the nearest communes still registered to stay…”

Going back to events 30 years ago, when the plan for the traditional storytelling competition was announced, I received news that Colonel Phan Duc Khuoc from Lien Thanh commune had registered to tell the story: "Directly participating in seizing power in the district on August 25, 1945." Following that, teacher To Sy Giou from Minh Thanh commune also registered to tell a story about participating in the General Uprising. And an elderly woman from Phu Thanh commune registered to tell her own story and mobilize people to participate in the "Golden Week" to support the Government after the successful August Revolution... Good news poured in from various localities to the District Fatherland Front. The atmosphere at the District Fatherland Front office was completely different from usual, more bustling and enthusiastic... All of this created a joyful and enthusiastic atmosphere in every village and hamlet in the district.

Ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Ho Chi Minh Memorial Area commemorating President Ho Chi Minh's visit to Vinh Thanh commune (December 2011). (Archival photo)

I recall that during a meeting, Mr. Nguyen Van Bong, Vice Chairman of the District Fatherland Front Committee, said: “The atmosphere of preparation in the communes is very lively. Both the elderly and the young are enthusiastically participating in the competition. In particular, there was an elderly person who registered to tell stories but couldn't come and had to be driven by their children or grandchildren. They might not be able to stand while telling their stories and asked to sit instead…”

During the days leading up to the competition, I went back to Vinh Thanh every week to check on the preparations, such as the competition venue, accommodation for the delegations, publicity work, and activities before and during the competition. The most gratifying thing was the enthusiastic support from the leaders of Vinh Thanh commune.

Former Chairman of the People's Committee of Vinh Thanh commune, Vu Minh Thao, recalled: "The Party Committee and the People's Committee of the commune mobilized all available resources to serve the competition. The biggest concern was arranging accommodation for the 22 delegations from the district attending the competition…"

The Chairman of the People's Committee of Vinh Thanh Commune, Nguyen Thanh Hung, led us to visit the exhibition of artifacts from President Ho Chi Minh's visit to Vinh Thanh Commune on December 10, 1961… The guide was a young woman with a soft, warm voice. When talking about the photographs on display, she suddenly turned to me and said, “The credit for these artifacts goes primarily to Mr. Lang Hong Quang.” With a mix of apprehension and honor, I recalled the days leading up to the opening of the Ho Chi Minh Memorial House. Looking at the empty display cases, I thought I had to contribute something to enrich the collection. I remembered that Nguyen Ba Ngoc, from Lien Thanh Commune, worked at the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hanoi. I called Ngoc and told him I really wanted to buy a set of President Ho Chi Minh's shirt and rubber sandals to display in the memorial house in Vinh Thanh Commune. Ngoc said, “We can't buy them, but I can tell you where you can have them made.” I was overjoyed. When I sent President Ho Chi Minh's shirt and rubber sandals to the Memorial House, I felt an indescribable warmth in my heart. But I couldn't stop thinking, "It's too simple; we need more artifacts or images to enrich the Memorial House. The quickest way is with photos." Thinking this, I immediately thought of photographer Van Hoanh. The next day, I went to Vinh City and met Van Hoanh, asking him to find and print some photos of President Ho Chi Minh's visit to Vinh Thanh commune 30 years ago. Van Hoanh directed me to...Soviet MuseumOr the Kim Lien Historical Site, but time was very limited at the time. Luckily, I remembered Ms. Phung Ngan Hoa, from Yen Thanh, who worked in archiving at the Provincial People's Committee. It turned out that Ms. Hoa had the entire set of photos from President Ho Chi Minh's visit to Vinh Thanh commune. I borrowed the photos and used my camera to retake them. I was concerned that only about 20-25% of the photos were usable. So I went to Van Hoanh. Photographer Van Hoanh and his wife, Ms. Ho, painstakingly edited, reshot, and enlarged the 23 photos three times, all of them almost perfect. The artist's family also supported the entire cost of restoration and enlargement. A few days later, the Ho Chi Minh Memorial House in Vinh Thanh commune had a fairly complete set of "Photos of President Ho Chi Minh's visit to Vinh Thanh commune on December 10, 1961".

In front of the Ho Chi Minh Memorial House in Vinh Thanh commune (the author is third from the left). Photo: TGCC

At exactly 8:00 AM on December 5, 1991, the opening ceremony of the competition and the incense offering ceremony to Uncle Ho took place. From many directions, groups of people with banners, hammer and sickle flags, and red flags with yellow stars marched towards the ceremonial platform. Twenty-three delegations from communes in the district and a large number of people from Vinh Thanh commune and neighboring communes attended. The delegation from the District Party Committee, People's Council, and People's Committee was led by Mr. Nguyen Vinh Thu - Chairman of the District People's Committee. The delegation from the District Catholic Solidarity Committee consisted of five priests, led by Mr. Nguyen Van Khoi…

The competition was lively and exciting, attracting a large crowd of people who came to listen and cheer. Many of the stories were truly touching.

Mr. Thai Huy Hoang, Secretary of the Party Committee of the commune, mused: “What I remember and am happiest about is hearing directly from Mr. Ngo Minh Hon – from the Vinh Thanh delegation, the first storyteller. Mr. Hon, who had the opportunity to directly welcome President Ho Chi Minh years ago, recounted the touching moment when he was close to him. Mr. Hon said that while the whole community sat silently waiting to hear President Ho Chi Minh speak, he stepped out and waved to the people. The applause was endless. Everyone wiped away tears of emotion. Then a district leader came closer with a black umbrella to shield President Ho Chi Minh from the sun. President Ho Chi Minh waved his hand and said: “If you can shield the elders and all the people, then shield me!”... The whole crowd was moved to tears again. Some people cried aloud. Mr. Hon concluded his presentation with the poem “The Echoes of President Ho Chi Minh’s Words.” The poem included the line:"Vinh Thanh commune was honored to welcome Uncle Ho for a visit/Uncle Ho's teachings still resonate/Like sweet fruits of Trai hamlet/Every winter, the flowers bloom again."smell…""The village where we are standing now is Xóm Trại. This was a tree nursery run by the elderly people back then..."

Recalling the competition, I remember unforgettable memories like the story told by Colonel Phan Duc Khuoc, about the heroic spirit of the people from all over the district flocking to the district headquarters. The shouts of slogans thundered like thunder as the crowd advanced into the palace to arrest the district chief. Even more moving was the image of teacher To Sy Giou, dressed in a soldier's uniform from a traditional play, with a sword at his side. He walked around the stage and told his story: "That day, I was just 17 years old…" He told it in simple yet captivating language, eliciting continuous rounds of applause. And many, many more true stories, captivating in their content and the narrator's perspective, and evoking such enthusiastic responses from the audience…

An aerial view of Vinh Thanh commune. Photo: Sach Nguyen

The most difficult and arduous task was the judging panel, chaired by Professor Hoang Tru, with other members including myself and colleagues such as Nguyen Van Bong, Le Xuan Nhuong, Nguyen Van Hanh, Phan The Phiệt, etc. I remember that before finalizing the competition results, Professor Hoang Tru met with me privately to outline his plan. He said: "It's too difficult," and he proposed a joint first prize for two people, Mr. Khuoc and Mr. Hon; a second prize for two people: Mr. Giou and Mr. Phan Quang; and a third prize for three people: Mr. Anh Hong (Phan Duat), Mrs. Luu Thi Xuan, and Mr. Hoang Duc… All I could say was: "Yes!"

Walking around the Memorial Area on the smooth, paved village road today, ahead of the 60th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh's visit to Vinh Thanh commune, remembering his words of advice that helped Vinh Thanh in particular and Yen Thanh district in general to become a New Rural Area of ​​the whole country, I am even more remembering and proud of the Yen Thanh District Fatherland Front for successfully organizing such a meaningful competition!

Vinh Thanh, November 2021