Sparkling little grains of sand

Her real name is Nguyen Thi Thu, born in 1993 in Soc Son, Hanoi , in a farming family. To raise their children, Thu's parents had to work very hard doing all kinds of jobs, from light to heavy.

Small things sometimes bring great joy to both yourself and others.

Feeling sorry for her parents' hardship, while studying in Hanoi, Thu lived very frugally, only daring to spend a few hundred thousand each month. As for food, she brought it from her hometown to save money.

Although life requires such fundamental calculations, whenever Thu has the opportunity, she does charity work. Thu said: My greatest joy as a student is wearing the green volunteer shirt. I have connected with many like-minded friends. Their group operates quite often. The activities, though small, sometimes bring great joy to both myself and others. For example, making pinwheels to sell to raise funds to help some disadvantaged children at the National Children's Hospital. Thu thought of "sowing good karma" by placing a plastic jar of change at the place of sale. Anyone who sees it will automatically put in a few thousand. That way, those who have a good heart, even if they are poor, have the opportunity to contribute a little bit of merit.

Thu's group also organizes an annual event, once a year, to raise money to cook rice and pho for the Thuy An Center for the Elderly and Disabled Children. That work has been maintained for nearly 10 years now.

But there would be nothing to talk about if everything was as smooth as that. When Thu was 23 years old, after graduating and working for a short time, she was discovered to have a congenital cerebral aneurysm (two aneurysms). The disease was in the late stage, could not be operated on, could only be treated by embolization at a high cost with a success rate of 50%. In case of success, the consequences would be very severe: either hemiplegia, blindness or possibly having to live a vegetative life for the following years.

This situation put Thu's family members in front of a difficult choice: either bail out the water while there is still life, or just wait until the vein breaks and the worst happens... Finally, after much struggle, Thu's mother decided to choose the "bailout" method.

But when one aneurysm was successfully plugged, the other suddenly burst, forcing a passive surgery. After that, Thu fell into a coma and the outcome was unpredictable.

My students are children in the village. Going to class is like going to a healthy playground to temporarily leave behind phones and technological games.

Fortunately, a few days later, Thu woke up but her right side was paralyzed, her face was deformed and she could not speak clearly. It was a hard thing to accept, but thanks to her mother's encouragement, she temporarily calmed down.

Mom reminded me to recite Buddha's name every day. It's not superstition, it's just finding a faith to rely on when my soul is confused and disoriented.

Gradually, Thu calmed down and thought: at least I'm still "alive", being alive means there's still hope. She accepted reality and considered the past days as "a draft of life". She put the draft aside and started writing new pages. It sounds simple, but "rewriting" is not easy. It's like a newborn baby learning to eat, to talk, to sit..., but unlike other children, the process of learning is extremely painful.

And as if by a miracle (actually, miracles do not come naturally), Thu's health gradually recovered to almost normal. Her mind also changed when she realized that she used to live too fast, wanting many things and always racing with them. This incident was like a brake, helping her live more slowly to feel more clearly the simple happiness around her.

The Buddha only shows the methods of practice, not an omnipotent being who can change someone’s fate. If people want to be happy, they must choose the path that is right for them, change their way of thinking, their way of looking at problems, and not just worry about what has happened.

Doing good deeds is quieter and deeper.

The path Thu chose is the path of doing good. Actually, it is still the same old path, but now she walks it with a different mindset, more calm and profound.

If only seeing Thu gently in blue shirt, holy face and clear eyes like a child, perhaps no one could imagine what she has been through.

In 2018, seeing that the lecture hall of the newly rebuilt village temple was spacious but had no practical activities, Thu asked the abbot for permission to open a class for children every Sunday. With the abbot's consent and the guidance and advice of the lecturers at Sung Phuc Zen Monastery, Thu established the "Kien Con" class.

My students are children in the village, coming to class is like going to a healthy playground to temporarily leave their phones and technology games. The children really enjoy the way "teacher Thu" teaches. It is very engaging, easy to understand, easy to remember, conveying beautiful messages in a gentle, natural way.

The letter teaches children to be polite, to help people, to protect the environment by "turning trash into flowers", that is, collecting recyclable trash and selling it to raise funds for charity.

Every few months, Thu organizes a "mother's foot washing" ceremony for the children to practice filial piety. Occasionally, she initiates a movement to make simple toys to sell to contribute to the fund. The children are very happy with that work.

At the end of 2022, Thu opened another class in Bac Giang , but after a short time, the monk wanted to send her to Ho Chi Minh City to study, so both classes officially stopped operating.

In Ho Chi Minh City, Thu learned how to make candles from natural materials to offer to pagodas. This job requires great care and solemnity in every gesture. Thu believes that this is also a way to practice mindfulness, helping people to concentrate, stay in the present, and not get tired because of random thoughts. If you yourself collapse because of those negative thoughts, you cannot help anyone.

Up to now, after nearly ten years, Thu has been quite diligent in her spiritual practice. Her illness has become more stable and she has not encountered any serious complications as the doctor warned.

Recently, Thu often appears on social networks, sometimes posting articles selling goods to raise funds, sometimes launching a movement to collect milk cartons for recycling in the program "one less piece of trash, one more green sprout". Sometimes she is seen collecting old batteries to send for toxic treatment before being released into the environment. Sometimes she calls on the online community to join hands to help someone in trouble. Most recently, she raised funds for a heart surgery for Dinh Quang Binh in Hien Le village, Cao Minh, Phuc Yen, Vinh Phuc .

If one only saw Thu gently in her blue shirt, her innocent face and her clear eyes like a child, perhaps no one could imagine what she had been through. It was also hard to believe that a young girl could do so many things.

When I asked to write about her, Thu said: "Actually, it's not that I have any extraordinary willpower. The things I do are simply because I'm grateful to life for letting me live. I see myself as just a small grain of sand...".

Yes, I think so too, you are just a grain of sand. But it is a grain of sand that knows how to sparkle on its own, and sparkles even more when illuminated by the light of good things. And I also believe that, under the bright sun, there are many grains of sand that sparkle like that.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hat-cat-nho-lap-lanh-185240927113220814.htm