Sitting on a small wooden chair, holding a hoe in both hands and constantly digging up weeds between the vegetable garden and the orchard, few people would think that Mr. Nguyen Hong Yen in Hamlet 1, Lang Son Commune, Anh Son District is a disabled veteran with 91% disability. It is even more surprising to know that this man who lost both legs and has only 9% of his health used to build a fence alone, take care of dozens of pigs with his wife and build a career for his children.
When a guest came to visit, Mr. Nguyen Hong Yen temporarily put aside his work, climbed into his wheelchair, went into the house to pour water, and chatted openly and intimately. “With this level of disability, I should have stayed on the battlefield forever, but I was extremely lucky to return, even though I only had less than 10% of my life left. Being alive is a blessing, so I always try to do everything I can and share with those in difficult situations, as a way of showing gratitude to life,” Mr. Yen began the story.
Born in 1960 in Lang Son commune, from a fishing village on the Lam River, at the age of 18, Mr. Nguyen Hong Yen joined the army, fighting with the unit in the Southwestern border. These were arduous and fierce years, facing the brutal Pol Pot army every day to protect the people along the border and the Cambodian people.
In 1982, while on patrol, young soldier Nguyen Hong Yen unfortunately stepped on a Pol Pot mine, which severed both of his legs and left him with dozens of wounds. His comrades took him to the rear for treatment. His disability rate was determined to be 91%, the most serious being the loss of both legs and a very deep wound in his lung. There were times when he felt death was near, and all he had to do was give up and go away forever.
After a long period of treatment and convalescence in hospitals and nursing homes for war invalids, Mr. Nguyen Hong Yen decided to return to his family, his young wife and young children, and many difficulties. The 1980s always evoke memories of poverty, many families fell into poverty and lack of clothing. With a man with only 9% of his health left, a wife without a stable source of income, and raising 3 young children, there were times when Mr. Yen thought he had reached the "end of the road".
But with the courage of a battle-hardened man, having experienced hardships and dangers many times, the soldier was determined to get up and continue the new battle. He shared: “Returning to a messy house, with many difficulties, not knowing where to start “untangling” so sometimes I could not avoid feeling discouraged. But then, remembering the times I read books and newspapers, always remembering Uncle Ho's teaching "A wounded soldier is disabled but not useless", I pushed aside discouragement and negative thoughts to integrate into life."
Starting with a loan to raise pigs, a really hard job, not easy even for a healthy person. Mrs. Pham Thi Loan (Mr. Yen's wife) is the one in charge of raising pigs, hardly having any rest. Not wanting to see his wife work hard, Mr. Yen takes on the job of cooking feed and bathing the pigs every day.
Fortunately, the livestock farming was quite favorable, the family economy was increasingly stable, Mr. Yen and his wife decided to expand the scale of the barn, planting more fruit trees. Although he lost his legs, fortunately his hands were still intact and skillful, he built the fence around the house by himself. The progress may be slow, but Mr. Yen's fence is considered to be technically guaranteed, the quality is not inferior to that of a normal construction worker.
Spending time reading books, newspapers, and technical documents on raising pigs and chickens, Mr. Nguyen Hong Yen has accumulated more and more knowledge and experience in animal care. Thanks to that, his family's pigs and poultry have developed well, are less susceptible to diseases, and bring in an increasingly high income, helping the family save up to build a house and buy amenities. The years of hardship and toil have gradually passed, giving way to a comfortable and prosperous life.
Now that the children have grown up and have their own families, the disability allowance has increased, and their health has improved a lot, Mr. Yen and his wife no longer have to work as much as before. On sunny days, he goes out to weed the vegetable garden, hoe the fruit trees, and look after the grandchildren.
In the past, whenever he felt healthy, Mr. Yen often arranged to go to the southwestern border provinces, to the martyrs' cemeteries to find his comrades and helped some families find their relatives' graves. "Although I am full of injuries, being able to return alive is extremely lucky. I always try to live a meaningful life, worthy of the sacrifice of my comrades and willing to share and help people in difficult circumstances as Uncle Ho taught," Mr. Yen confided.
Having a stable income compared to the people in the area, Mr. Nguyen Hong Yen has saved to share with people in difficult circumstances, especially poor children and lonely elderly people. For many years, Mr. Yen has been known by the people of Lang Son commune as a generous person. Although his body is full of injuries and his family's conditions are not very good, every school year he still gives gifts to support poor students.
Every year, on the occasion of the new school year, veteran Nguyen Hong Yen usually gives 10 gifts to 10 students in difficult circumstances. In particular, from 2017 until now, he has taken care of Lo Viet Anh, an orphan whose mother has no stable job and has to rely on the care of her grandparents.
Every time a new school year begins, Mr. Yen spends 1 million VND to buy books and clothes. During Tet, Lo Viet Anh receives clothes from his sponsor, sometimes a small amount of money but contains a lot of love. That is the motivation, giving the unfortunate boy more strength to overcome his circumstances, towards a beautiful life. Mr. Yen will continue to support Viet Anh, only stopping when his family's health and economic conditions no longer allow it...
On the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival this year, Mr. Yen spent money to support buying cakes and candies to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival for children in hamlets 4 and 5, Lang Son commune. These are two hamlets that still face many difficulties, the lives and income of the people are limited so they do not have the conditions to care for their children. War invalid Nguyen Hong Yen wants to bring more joy to the children on Children's Day, thereby hoping that parents will care more for their children.
Not only supporting children in poor and unfortunate circumstances, Mr. Nguyen Hong Yen also shares the difficulties with lonely elderly people. Every year on the occasion of Lunar New Year, the war invalid with only 9% of his health still saves some of his spending to buy gifts (rice, cooking oil, fish sauce) for families with elderly and lonely people.
In 2009, Mr. Yen agreed to help Mr. Pham Viet Hoa and his wife, who were old and raising two disabled children, by providing 20,000 VND per month. Recently, Mr. Hoa and his wife received an old-age pension, and their two disabled children also received social benefits, so Mr. Yen asked to stop providing monthly support. However, during Tet, Mr. Hoa and his wife still received a gift from the kind-hearted seriously wounded veteran.
