Dad's bicycle

BPO - I was born and raised by the peaceful and poetic O Lau River. During the war years, my hometown was severely devastated. After the country was unified, the people fell into poverty and hardship. I am the sixth child, and I have three younger siblings. With so many children, besides a few acres of leased rice paddies and dry land allocated by the cooperative for growing rice and other crops, we had no other source of income. Living in poverty and lacking food and clothing, my father was determined not to let his children drop out of school.

With the burden of raising a large family of young children, my parents toiled tirelessly day after day. I remember, in 1980, when I was 7 years old, my father bought a used bicycle from an acquaintance. The bicycle became the means of transportation and livelihood for the whole family. On that bicycle, my father traveled back and forth countless times to make a living. A friend from another village, 30 kilometers away, rented land to us. On his rickety bicycle, he would take my mother to plant cassava; every few days he would cycle to check if the cassava had sprouted, then weed and fertilize. Each harvest season, he would load the cassava into sacks, tie them to the back of the bicycle, and make five trips to finish it all. In the summer, seeing his shirt soaked with sweat, I felt so sorry for him. In 1981, my eldest brother was drafted into the army, my eldest sister finished 9th grade and stayed home to help my parents with farming and tending the buffaloes, while the remaining seven siblings were still of school age. My father shouldered all the heavy work in the house alone.

Illustration: Sy Hoa

With his back hunched over the rickety bicycle, my father took my siblings and me to the commune's health station whenever we were sick; he also took my mother to the morning and afternoon markets to sell vegetables and agricultural products to buy food for the whole family. I remember one time, while cutting grass for the buffaloes in the neighboring village's fields, he was suddenly bitten on the leg by a dog. The bite was quite deep and bleeding. He chewed some grass leaves and applied them to the wound, then quickly tied the grass to his bicycle and cycled home. That night, he developed a fever. My whole family was very worried. Fearing he might have been rabid, he decided to cycle to the city's medical center for a vaccination. He got up at 5 a.m. to get the injection. The round trip was nearly 100 kilometers. Yet, he persevered and received all the necessary doses…

Working tirelessly all day, we still didn't have enough to eat… Yet I never once saw my father raise his voice or scold my siblings and me. He was calm, hardworking, and kind-hearted. At that time, only about five houses in our neighborhood owned bicycles. Therefore, whenever someone needed to go far and urgently, my father would always use his bicycle to help.

I have an unforgettable memory from those difficult days with my father. It was the year I was in 12th grade at the district school, and I won a prize in the provincial-level student excellence competition. The province invited students and parents to attend the awards ceremony. The invitation stated 8:00 AM. On our bicycle, my father and I took turns pedaling and set off at 5:00 AM. My father calculated that the distance from our house to the provincial cultural center was about 52 kilometers, taking approximately 2.5 hours. Unexpectedly, the bicycle malfunctioned along the way, the chain kept coming off. Each time the chain came off, my father and I pulled the bike to the side of the road, and he put the chain back on the chainring. His hands were covered in oil and grease, and his shirt was soaked with sweat. We arrived at the cultural center 30 minutes late. Before I could even sit down, I heard the organizers reading out the list of the next students, and my name was on it. Thank goodness… From the stage, I looked at my father. His face, smeared with oil and grease that he hadn't had time to wipe off, smiled contentedly at me, his eyes welling up with tears. Perhaps, Dad cried tears of joy for not missing such an important occasion for me; he cried tears of emotion for the academic achievements of a student from a district school like me…

Time has passed, and my siblings and I are now grown up and mature. My mother has passed away, and my father is almost 90 years old… Life has changed a lot, but one thing remains: my childhood, spent with my father's bicycle, is forever filled with memories. That old, faded bicycle, still kept by my father as a memento. Every time I return home and see the bicycle, I vividly remember my father's sweat-drenched back and his tireless pedaling. Remembering those days of hardship and scarcity with him makes me appreciate the value of our present life even more.

Every time I face challenges in life, the image of my father on his bicycle from years ago gives me strength. I will tell my children about those difficult but loving days, so that they will have a support system to help them grow stronger in this bustling city life…

Hello, dear viewers! Season 4, themed "Father," officially launches on December 27, 2024, across four media platforms and digital infrastructures of Binh Phuoc Radio and Television and Newspaper (BPTV), promising to bring to the public the wonderful values ​​of sacred and beautiful fatherly love.
Please send your touching stories about fathers to BPTV by writing articles, personal reflections, poems, essays, video clips, songs (with audio recordings), etc., via email to chaonheyeuthuongbptv@gmail.com, Editorial Secretariat, Binh Phuoc Radio and Television and Newspaper Station, 228 Tran Hung Dao Street, Tan Phu Ward, Dong Xoai City, Binh Phuoc Province, phone number: 0271.3870403. The deadline for submissions is August 30, 2025.
High-quality articles will be published and shared widely, with payment for their contributions, and prizes will be awarded upon completion of the project, including one grand prize and ten outstanding prizes.
Let's continue writing the story of fathers with "Hello, My Love" Season 4, so that stories about fathers can spread and touch everyone's hearts!

Source: https://baobinhphuoc.com.vn/news/19/172438/chiec-xe-dap-cua-ba