The widow of a fallen soldier and the letters that have accompanied her through the years.

Love during wartime

During the month of July, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Luong (born in 1947) in Thanh Vinh ward is once again overwhelmed with longing and sorrow for her husband who sacrificed his life in the resistance war against the US to save the country.

She would often stand before the altar, conversing with her husband's portrait, and then carefully flip through the photos and letters that had been stored away for over half a century.

"It's been over 55 years since Kien left his family to join the army, but sometimes it feels like it was just yesterday. Because his image, words, and gestures are still vividly imprinted in my mind, and I still often see him in my dreams every night," Mrs. Luong confided.

Mrs. Nguyen Thi Luong and her husband aremartyrsNguyen Van Kien (born in 1944) and Ms. Luong met at a Party Committee member training course in Vinh town. Both were young Party members selected to participate in Party activities. Mr. Kien was a young cadre in the food industry, while Ms. Luong was a worker at the Tran Phu Mechanical Enterprise.

From the moment they met, they felt an immediate affection for each other, their feelings growing stronger over time, fueled by the encouragement of their friends and their hopes for a happy marriage. Then, seven months after their first meeting, their wedding was held in 1970, amidst the shared joy of their families and friends.

After their wedding, they continued working in Vinh town. Although they lived nearby, they could only see each other on Sundays due to their busy schedules. They cherished and treasured those brief moments together. And then, the young wife joyfully discovered she was carrying her husband's child – the sweet culmination of their love during wartime.

Not long after receiving the good news, Mr. Nguyen Van Kien received an order.join the armyOn the day her husband left, the young wife, Nguyen Thi Luong, saw him off for a long distance, holding his hand tightly and promising to wait for his return to share the joy of their homeland and country. Mr. Nguyen Van Kien and his training unit were in Thanh Hoa, and a few months later they transferred to Ha Bac to continue their training.

During this time, the young couple frequently wrote letters to each other. Mr. Kien told his wife about his camaraderie with his comrades, about military life and the arduous training days. Mrs. Luong, in turn, informed her husband about his health, work, and family back home. Each letter was filled with love and affection between husband and wife during their long separation.

One day in early 1972, a few months after giving birth to her daughter, Mrs. Luong received a telegram from her husband informing her that his unit was about to enter the battlefield in the South. The unit was traveling by train, making a stop at Vinh station, and he hoped she could arrange to meet him.

The train was expected to arrive at Vinh station in the morning, but due to the emergency, it departed several hours earlier and arrived in Vinh the evening before. Mr. Kien had no choice but to walk to a friend's house to ask for a bicycle to take him home. Upon arriving home, the soldier only had time to hug and kiss his baby daughter lying in her cradle and hold his wife's hand, saying, "Wait for me to come home!" before hastily marching back with his unit…

A steadfast heart

As the battlefield intensified, communication between the two regions became increasingly difficult. Since her husband went to war, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Luong only received three hastily written letters, one of which she didn't receive until a year later. The letters contained the soldier's feelings for his wife back home, his determination to fight, and his hope for reunion in peacetime.

At the end of 1972, Mrs. Luong received her husband's death notice. The ground beneath her feet seemed to collapse, everything around her spun, and the young wife felt as if she would fall apart. But then, thinking of her young daughter, she pulled herself together to continue living and raising her child.

It's impossible to recount all the hardships and sorrows of a single mother raising her child, but Mrs. Luong persevered through it all to raise her daughter, Nguyen Thi Thu Hien, to adulthood.

Ms. Luong shared: "During times of sadness and despair, I would look through the photos and letters to relive cherished memories with my deceased husband. These mementos have given me strength and served as a spiritual motivation to overcome the many difficulties and challenges in my life."

We would like to ask Mrs. Luong's permission to see a letter in the file.souvenirsThe letter, dated April 30, 1971, contained not only greetings but also a description of training activities at the training ground.

The young soldier began by writing:"My dear wife! I'm sure you and our children are exhausted from work right now, enduring this sweltering heat. If I were here with you, I'd endure the hardship and breathe for you too..."Then he broke the news to his wife:"My dear! I just wanted to let you know I haven't joined the army yet. I'm training hard. The demands of fighting the Americans today are different; they require every officer and soldier to have excellent skills, techniques, and tactics...".

There are pages of letters with smudged ink, perhaps because on lonely nights, the wife, missing her husband, would take out the old letters to read, tears falling onto the wet, blurred pages…

Speaking of her beloved mother, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Hien couldn't hide her pride in the unwavering loyalty and devotion of her parent. After her husband's sacrifice, her mother dedicated the rest of her life to raising and caring for her daughter until she grew up and became an adult.

According to Ms. Hien, in 2009, thanks to the help of her comrades, Ms. Luong, her daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren found the grave of martyr Nguyen Van Kien and brought him back to his hometown for burial. It was then that they learned her husband had died on April 29, 1975, in Tay Ninh, not at the end of 1972 as stated in the death certificate.

"My husband died one day before the liberation of Saigon, yet from the end of 1972, our family was deeply saddened to hear that he had fallen on the battlefield," Mrs. Luong recalled.

Arranging the photos and letters of her fallen husband, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Luong said: “Two years ago, I donated more than 10 artifacts to the Museum of Military Region 4, including letters and telegrams my husband sent home during his training in Thanh Hoa and Ha Bac. Through this, I hope these mementos will live on through time, helping future generations better understand the love between us and the sacrifices of the generation during the war against the US to save the country.”

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After receiving the letters donated by Ms. Nguyen Thi Luong, the Museum of Military Region 4 will organize an exhibition upon completion of its restoration and construction. These letters are historical fragments, vivid evidence of love between couples and the bond between the front lines and the home front during the historical period of the struggle against the US and for national liberation. Therefore, they have profound educational significance, especially in educating the younger generation about morality and revolutionary ideals."

Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Huu Hoanh - Assistant to the Museum of Military Region 4