Emotional memory of the day Uncle Ho visited his hometown

(Baonghean.vn) - Having devoted his entire life to the nation's revolutionary cause, Uncle Ho only visited his hometown twice (in 1957 and 1961). Over the past 60 years, the memories of the people of Kim Lien (Nam Dan) still remain in the memories of the first time he visited his hometown.

Tourists visit Uncle Ho's hometown. Photo: Huy Thu

For Mr. Vo Hong Thao (74 years old), in Sen 2 hamlet - a former cadre of the Kim Lien relic site, that was a particularly memorable day in his life. Especially since the day "The Man Who Searched for the Shape of the Country", more than half a century later, it was the first time his homeland welcomed Uncle Ho back.

Mr. Thao recalled that some time before, the people of Kim Lien saw soldiers coming to the village to set up a stage made of bamboo and wood, but absolutely no one knew what was going on. The stadium area was the center of the village, so children often went there to play. On the night of June 15, 1957, the moon shone brightly on the banyan tree, the Lao wind blew strongly, the children in the village (including Mr. Thao) still played and frolicked carefree next to this stage.

Mr. Vo Hong Thao - former officer of Kim Lien relic site recalls the memory of the day Uncle Ho visited his hometown. Photo: Huy Thu

On the morning of June 16, 1957, Mr. Thao and his mother went plowing potatoes in the Sen field. This season, the people of Sen village were entering the main sweet potato harvest season, so they went to the fields early in the morning. While everyone was engrossed in their work, they heard the news that "Uncle Ho was coming back", so the whole village left the potatoes that were being harvested in the fields and ran quickly back to the village, wet and dry. When the people in the fields knew that Uncle Ho was coming back, he had already been home for a while and had arrived at the Nguyen Sinh family temple. Mr. Thao and his brothers followed the villagers to the stadium, which was already crowded at that time.

“My brother and I sat near the front row, clearly seeing his every gesture, look, and voice. He opened the conversation with the verse: “My homeland is a place of great love and affection/ Those fifty years, how much love there is” - Mr. Thao recalled.

The first time seeing Uncle Ho with their own eyes and hearing him speak, everyone in Kim Lien wanted to see him more closely and listen to him speak longer. However, due to limited time, he had to say goodbye to the villagers with regret. Mr. Thao said: “Before getting on the car, Uncle gave the villagers some tea and some candy for the children. My brothers and I also received a gift from Uncle Ho, which was 4 small candies, and held them in our hands until we left.”

The banyan tree at Sen village stadium, where Uncle Ho spoke during his two visits to his homeland. Photo: Huy Thu

In 1961, while studying at Huynh Thuc Khang School (Vinh City), he welcomed Uncle Ho back to his hometown for the second time. At that time, his younger sister, Vo Thi Minh Chau, an excellent student of the province, was assigned the task of giving flowers to Uncle Ho when he returned to Kim Lien. After finishing high school, he joined the army to fight the Americans. In 1970, he returned to his hometown and had the honor of serving in the Kim Lien relic site until 2006.

Now, although his health has declined and he has difficulty moving, when recalling the memories of Uncle Ho's visit to his hometown, Mr. Thao cannot help but be moved and emotional. He shared: "Times have passed, but I still remember the image of Uncle Ho visiting his hometown that year. Having welcomed Uncle Ho twice, and working for 36 years at the Kim Lien Relic Site, I have become more imbued with his ideology and always tried to study and follow his teachings."

For Mrs. Nguyen Thi Van, commonly known as Mrs. Thoan (95 years old) in Sen 3 hamlet, although her husband, Mr. Nguyen Sinh Thoan, is in charge of taking care of Uncle Ho at his house, she was still very surprised when she heard that Uncle Ho was coming back to visit his hometown.

On the night of June 15, 1957, Mr. Thoan came back and told everyone, “Tomorrow, there will be cadres coming back,” but he himself did not know who they were. The next morning, upon hearing the news that “Uncle Ho is coming back,” Mr. Van immediately carried his child and ran to Uncle Ho’s house. However, when Mr. Van arrived, Uncle Ho and the villagers were walking to the stadium. The memory that Mr. Van remembered most was when he was walking on the village road, the villagers kept shouting in unison, “Long live Uncle Ho.” Seeing that, Uncle told them, “Everyone, just keep quiet and go,” so no one shouted anymore.

When they reached the stadium, people were standing in circles inside and outside. 60 years have passed, now he is the village's longest-lived person, but Mrs. Van is still lucid, always telling her children and grandchildren about her memories of Uncle Ho. She could not hide her pride: "68 years of Party membership, decades of working as a commune women's cadre, I still remember Uncle Ho's words when he visited my hometown."

Tourists are moved to hear stories about Uncle Ho's life when visiting his house at Kim Lien relic site. Photo: Huy Thu

Although her family lived next to the stadium, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Tam (95 years old, commonly known as Co Suu) in Sen 3 hamlet only knew that Uncle Ho visited his hometown when he was harvesting potatoes in the field. The memory that impressed Mrs. Tam the most when Uncle Ho returned that year was that the Sen village stadium was packed with people, but the young men and women, the elderly, etc. stood and sat very orderly.

Especially after more than half a century of visiting his homeland, Uncle Ho still remembered very clearly the names of the hamlets and villages. In front of a large crowd of people, he pointed in different directions and read the hamlet names very accurately: This is Ke Trac, this is Thanh Dam, this is Cuong Ky, this is Thien My...

For the people of Kim Lien, recalling the day Uncle Ho visited his hometown exactly 60 years ago, each person keeps a moment, a separate emotion. Most of the people who had the honor of meeting Uncle Ho that day are now “rarely seen in the past”, many of them have passed away. However, the story of Uncle Ho's memories is still passed down from generation to generation, flowing forever in the hearts and minds of the people of Uncle Ho's hometown.

Huy Thu