The "little soldier" from Nghe An province spent three years going to school on his friend's back.

Cruel fate

Nguyen Manh Chien (14 years old) sits in the front row of 9D class at Dien Ky Secondary School (Dien Chau). Upon entering the classroom, Chien is easily recognizable because his head is almost level with the backpack next to him, dwarfed by his classmates who are also growing up and sitting around him.

The student's desk had become too big; every time Chiến wrote, he had to reach and stretch his body over the tabletop.

Standing just over 1 meter tall and weighing around 14 kg, Chien is tiny compared to his peers, and fate has challenged him by giving him a birth defect.

"I don't know what disease I have, I only know that since I grew up, my back, arms, and legs are different from my parents and siblings. My friends in the neighborhood are growing taller and bigger, running and jumping everywhere, while I remain tiny and unable to walk out of the house on my own," Chien recounted, his eyes welling up with tears.

With a height of just over 1 meter and weighing around 14 kg, Nguyen Manh Chien was dwarfed by his classmates sitting around him.

Chiến's father, Mr. Nguyen Van An (43 years old), recounted that on the day his child was born, holding him in his arms, he immediately noticed something unusual: his arms, legs, and back were bent and curved, unlike a normal child. "My wife and I tried everything, selling off all our possessions and borrowing more money to take our child to various hospitals, hoping for a 'miracle' to save him and give him a normal body, but in the end, we were left with only disappointment...", he said.

As Chiến grew older, his body became increasingly frail due to spinal curvature and deformity, his limbs underdeveloped, and he was as thin as a stick, making movement extremely difficult, and his back increasingly bent. Therefore, Mr. An and his wife sometimes didn't want their son to grow any older, because the older he got, the worse his condition became, and their worries and sorrows only grew.

The couple named their son Mạnh Chiến (meaning "Strong and Valiant"), hoping that their disabled son would have the strength to overcome the harshness of fate and the resilience to survive amidst life's hardships. Raising a disabled child requires not only love but also patience, endurance, and self-sacrifice. Their work in the fields and trading kept them busy, constantly rushing back and forth to support their four young children, yet they still showered Chiến with love and affection.

Throughout his school years, Chien has always received care and support from his teachers.

On nights when Chiến was in excruciating pain, unable to move his body, his parents stayed up all night massaging and comforting their unfortunate child. Even at a young age, Chiến sensed the harsh reality and the hardships his parents endured. He could only bury his head in his pillow and sob, and his parents cried along with him.

When Chiến was five years old, his parents took turns helping him learn to walk, each step excruciatingly painful, as if hundreds of needles were piercing his flesh, the pain so intense it reached his bones, causing his feet to bleed and turn purple. He had to grit his teeth and suppress the pain during his first steps. After much practice, he finally learned to walk, but his feet couldn't straighten; he had to walk on tiptoes, using all ten toes to support himself on the ground.

Therefore, he would stumble and fall after taking no more than three steps, each fall causing excruciating pain throughout his body, so intense it brought tears to his eyes. To avoid falling, he had to cling to walls or hold onto nearby objects, but ultimately, he could never take steady steps on his own two feet.

The journey is not a solitary one.

At the age of six, while his neighbors' children were being bought books, notebooks, and clothes by their parents to start first grade, Chien also demanded that his parents buy them. Deep down, Mr. and Mrs. An never considered sending Chien to school, as it was too difficult and overwhelming for a child with scoliosis and unable to move on his own. But the child's pleading tears fell, and they couldn't hold back their tears. They hugged him tightly, and all three of them cried, losing count of how many times they had cried.

Nguyen Manh Chien's academic performance is rated as good, excelling in all subjects. This achievement is due not only to his own efforts and the care of his teachers but also to the support and assistance of his close friends.

A few days later, Chien was driven to school by his father, and from then on, Mr. and Mrs. An took turns picking up and dropping off their son, regardless of scorching sun, pouring rain, or freezing cold. On some bitterly cold days, with the wind howling, carrying their small, shivering child on the back of the motorbike, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Loan (Chien's mother) suddenly burst into tears...

Fortunately, Chiến went to school and met enthusiastic, dedicated, and compassionate teachers. They helped him practice writing, teaching him math so he could keep up with his classmates. Because he was always diligent, hardworking, well-behaved, and polite, everyone loved him. His teachers and friends called Chiến "the little tin soldier" because of his perseverance and spirit; despite his weak body, he still persevered to explore and acquire knowledge.

Chiến recalled: “In first grade, I mainly practiced writing and math. The hardest part was writing because my hands were difficult to bend and straighten, so writing was painful. Every time I held a pen, it would slip, and when I did manage to hold it, the letters were messy and not straight. The teacher always stood beside me, holding my hand and guiding me through each letter. Gradually, I was able to write neatly and in straight lines, and my fingers didn't hurt as much anymore.”

For over three years, before and after each school day, Chiến has been carried on the backs of his two close friends, Phan Ngọc Tâm Đoan and Nguyễn Văn Trịnh, from the school gate to the classroom and back to the gate so his family can take him home.

For the past eight years, Chien has consistently achieved the title of Outstanding Student. Ms. Nguyen Thi Lien, the principal of Dien Ky Secondary School, said: "Chien is an intelligent and diligent student who grasps lessons quite quickly. During recess, classmates often ask Chien for help with homework or to explain difficult parts of the lesson."

Chiến still remembers vividly, more than three years ago – the first days of sixth grade – when his father dropped him off at the school gate, a friend leaned over and said, "Let me carry you to class!" Then another friend came up and said, "Let me help you carry your backpack!"

Chiến's biggest wish is to continue his education so that he can find a suitable job in the future.

Two classmates who helped Chien were Phan Ngoc Tam Doan and Nguyen Van Trinh.After that incident, the two boys took turns helping their friend, and they've continued to do so until now.

When asked about his future, Nguyen Manh Chien confided: "I will try even harder to study well so as not to disappoint everyone and pursue higher education so that I can find a suitable job later." May the dreams of this "little soldier" come true so that he can continue to spread hope and love in life!

Cong Kien