Heartbreaking second grade boy taking care of bedridden father

(Baonghean) - Listening to her talk about her disabled father with each hiccup, about her dream of becoming a doctor, we could not hold back our tears. Only in 2nd grade, because of her family's unfortunate circumstances, she has become more mature and experienced than her 7 years old self.

In early March, we visited the house of Nguyen Manh Tan and Nguyen Thi Thuy in hamlet 4, Hung Phuc commune (Hung Nguyen). It was 11am but only Tan was lying on the bed. There was nothing valuable in the house. Hearing someone calling, he could only lie in one place and shout.

Five years ago, Mr. Tan had an accident, paralyzed all four limbs, and was completely dependent on his wife and two young children for all his personal activities. While we were talking, suddenly a child's voice came from the gate: "Dad, I got 10 points in Math again today!" Mr. Tan lay on the bed, smiling proudly: "That's my youngest son, very obedient and a good student!"

Hoang gives his father water when his mother is away. Photo: TT

Entering the house was a small boy, dark skin, big round eyes and smiling shyly when seeing a stranger in the house. After greeting us, the boy quickly went into the house to get water and then put a straw in it to bring to his father to drink.

He did everything carefully and quickly as if he had been doing it for a long time. When he finished, he went into the kitchen to get the rice cooker, washed the rice, and cooked it while waiting for his mother to come home. That was Nguyen Trong Hoang.

This year, Hoang is in 2nd grade at Hung Phuc Primary School. Hoang sat down on a plastic chair next to the bed, massaging his father while gently telling us about his family's situation.

“It has been 5 years since the motorbike hit him. My father has to lie in bed, unable to move or do anything. Every day, my mother wakes up early in the morning to take care of my father, from eating, going to the toilet, changing clothes... My father is paralyzed, and his body is covered with sores. In addition to taking care of my father, my mother also sells goods on the street and works in the fields to earn money for my siblings and me to study, and also for medicine for my father Tan.

Since the accident, Dad has been unable to move his limbs and has to use a plastic straw to eat and drink. But he can only eat a little when his mother or sister Truc, Hoang's older sister, feeds him rice and porridge. I can only help Dad drink water when my mother and sister are not home.

Thinking back to the days when my father was still healthy, working as a construction worker to earn money to support the family, it was so much fun. Even though my parents had a hard time raising me and my siblings, the family was always filled with laughter and happiness.

Happy because every night the whole family sits down to dinner together. Dad Tan serves food to mom and two sisters. After dinner, my sister sits at the desk to study, and I watch TV with my parents or listen to them discuss farming and gardening...

But that joy suddenly disappeared after the accident happened to my father. My father had to stay in the hospital and receive treatment for years, from the provincial hospital to Hanoi for many days, but he still could not recover as before. My mother sold everything of value in the house to buy medicine and pay for my father's hospital bills, but it was still not enough. My father had to go to the hospital once a month, and each time he had to stay in the hospital for more than a week before returning home, and my mother had to stay and take care of my father for a week.

At home, I can only help my mother take care of the chickens and do odd jobs, while Truc takes advantage of her time off from school to help her mother sell goods. The two of us sometimes go out together to catch crabs and snails in the fields to sell to earn extra money for our mother to buy meat, or put money in our piggy bank to buy clothes and books for the next school year.

I remember the times when the whole family ate rice with vegetables for many days in a row, the adults said that Dad was severely anemic, and had to rush to take Dad to the hospital. There was nothing left in the house to sell, and when Dad was hospitalized, Mom had to run around the neighborhood to borrow money to take Dad to the hospital. I felt so sorry for Mom, she really wanted to buy fish and meat for Dad, but the money she saved from selling goods was only enough to buy medicine.

One time, I heard my mother talking to Truc: "Mom doesn't have money to feed dad and the two of you delicious food. When dad gets better, I will make it up to you two!" Whenever I hear my mother say that, I really want to cry...

Hoang is a good son, good at studying and very filial. Photo: TT

On school days, seeing my friends being taken to school by their fathers, I felt very sorry for my father. He was not allowed to take me and Truc to school, so he had to stay home alone. He could not get water to drink or peel orange segments to eat.

I don't know what to do to make my dad healthy again. I wish my dad's legs were as healthy as before, his hands could move, he could play with me and most importantly he could sit down and eat with the whole family. But many adults who came to visit my dad shook their heads, I knew it would be difficult for him to be like before. I really want to be a doctor. I will try my best to study hard so that I can become a doctor in the future, to heal my dad's legs and those who are unfortunate like him.

Summer is approaching, Tan's father often has difficulty breathing. On days when the temperature is high, his face turns purple and he can't speak. If he is at home, his mother will be by his side, immediately helping him sit up and rubbing his chest, then he won't be in pain. Last summer, there were many days when my mother had to stop selling goods outside the school gate to stay home and take care of my father. I was so afraid that my father would die. I wanted my father to wait until I finished studying to be a doctor, then I would cure him. I love my mother very much but I don't know what to do...

Thien Thien - Tran Thuy