Leaning on poetry, standing up to welcome the sun
(Baonghean.vn) - After an unfortunate accident at the age of 10, Ho Sy Giap (Dai Dong commune, Thanh Chuong district) had to accept a life of disability when he could only move his two arms. But he got up to live a second life. As the preface to his first poetry collection published by the Writers' Association Publishing House wrote: "The poet from Nghe An, with extraordinary willpower, held on to the verses to stand up, still striving to live a better life, like a sunflower always looking towards the sun to welcome the warm rays of sunlight."
PEACE OF MIND
He was a special man. Special because he always brought many surprises to those who met him and learned about his life full of ups and downs. Those ups and downs started with an accident in 1964, when Ho Sy Giap was 10 years old. While herding buffalo with a friend, he unfortunately fell off the buffalo's back, causing severe brain and spinal injuries. The next 3 years were the time when he and his family had to go in and out of many hospitals to fight for their lives. Loving their son, the poor family had to borrow money to take him to many hospitals for examination and treatment, but only received head shakes from the doctors.
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| Mr. Ho Sy Giap. Photo: Thanh Quynh |
Ho Sy Giap had to accept the fact that he would live the rest of his life with paralysis, with only his hands being able to move weakly. Having to drop out of school, all daily activities became difficult, and having to rely on the help of relatives for all personal activities made his life a series of deadlocks. His world now narrowed to a small bed.
When the pain began to subside, he borrowed books and notebooks from his friends to study at home. His love for learning grew as he was given more books and notebooks by teachers in the village. Thanks to his innate talent and passion for literature, he often searched for and collected folk songs, proverbs and works of folk literature. Then he began to compose his first poems when he turned 15, to the surprise of everyone. The poems of Ho Sy Giap began to be recited by the children in the village. Later, many people in the village's activities also enjoyed reading those poems.
When he reached adulthood, because his family was poor and he was the second son in a family of 7 siblings, he began to learn how to earn money to have more funds to buy books for self-study. With extraordinary determination, he learned how to weave baskets, trays, and fishing nets, and then asked his mother to take him to the market to sell. At that time, many people wondered how a paralyzed person could make such meticulous products. He honestly shared: “People have feet to step on bamboo fibers to weave, but I don’t have feet, so I use a chessboard and stones to replace my feet. All the remaining work depends on my hands. There were times when my hands contracted because of continuous work, making me cry, but I had to overcome it so that I wouldn’t become a burden on my parents’ livelihood.”
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| Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoa - sister-in-law, is the person who directly takes care of Mr. Giap next to the basket that Mr. Ho Sy Giap woven 20 years ago. Photo: Thanh Quynh |
"There are times when my hands cramp up because of working continuously, making me cry, but I have to overcome it so that I don't become a financial burden for my parents."
At those times, the motivation that helped him overcome those difficulties was the saying of Zen Master Vien Minh: "There is no peace in life, there is only peace in our souls." And that is the truth that has followed him until now.
LIFE IS STILL BEAUTIFUL
When his parents passed away, he was taken care of by his younger brother, Ho Sy Tuat. Loving his brother, Mr. Tuat bought him a computer and connected him to the internet so that he could have "companions" to relieve his sadness when he was home alone. From then on, a new world opened up before his eyes. He began to diligently type each line of poetry that he had composed as well as his own feelings. Through his quality compositions, he was invited to join online poetry groups, got to know and read many people's poems, so he improved day by day.
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| The certificate of second prize in the "Learning about Chinese history and culture" contest organized by Beijing Radio in 1991 was sent back from Beijing by Mr. Giap. |
His life has truly changed since he won second prize in the “Learning about Chinese History and Culture” contest organized by Beijing Radio in 1991. Thanks to his deep understanding of historical anecdotes and allusions related to Chinese history, culture and classic works of Chinese literature, he performed excellently in his exam. Upon hearing that he had won a high prize, everyone in the area was happy for him and gave him more books and materials for his research. His family still keeps and cherishes the award certificate and trophy to encourage and promote the passion for learning for his children and grandchildren.
With persistent labor, up to now, the spiritual "asset" warehouse has reached more than 3 thousand poems. 300 of them have been respectfully published by the Writers Association Publishing House into a poetry collection and widely released at the end of 2020. With many excellent works written about love for the homeland, love for life and the desire to love and devote, the poetry collection has touched the emotions of many poetry lovers. From here, he got to know and passed on his love for life to many disabled people he knew.
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| Cover photo of Ho Sy Giap's poetry collection. |
As the preface of the Editorial Board of the Writers Association Publishing House wrote about him: “With extraordinary willpower, he wrote his own life story and became a special light to help the less fortunate find motivation to live. And like him, they will overcome adversity with a passionate heart that loves life, like the two verses in the poem “Life is still beautiful” that he wrote:“People's hearts are filled with new things/ Happiness and suffering, but life is still beautiful…”.
