Spring always comes early at the border. When every house is filled with laughter and family reunions, in the remote borderlands there are still the silent footsteps of soldiers in green uniforms. 
Spring is coming, which is also the time when the borderland is filled with flags and flowers, celebrating the Party, celebrating spring, and celebrating the New Year. For the officers and soldiers of Po Ma border post (Trang Dinh district,
Lang Son province), each Tet holiday has its own unique emotions.

Having just started working at the Po Ma border post, Lieutenant Nguyen Huu Phong still cannot forget the first year he celebrated Tet at the border. He confided: “When I was a second-year student at the Border Guard Academy, I was assigned to support the border team and checkpoint, at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic was complicated. The day I carried my backpack back to the village, I had countless emotions, because perhaps that was truly the first challenge in my military career. But then, with each step on the patrol route in the middle of the vast mountains and forests, with thousands of flowers in bloom, I understood that the responsibility I was carrying on my shoulders was a source of pride, a noble mission and the trust that the people had placed in me.” This year is the second year he celebrated Tet at the border, but the student of that day is now a young officer, with a different excitement in his heart. “The epidemic situation has been controlled, I can feel more clearly the bustling atmosphere of Tet in the highlands. Going to the Tet market, I can see children with rosy cheeks, smiling brightly next to the brocade stalls, and learn about the unique customs and cultural practices of the people here. Those small happy things will help me somewhat ease my homesickness,” Lieutenant Phong confided.

At Ba Son border post (Cao Loc district, Lang Son province), there are still 6 teams, on duty at border points, trails, and openings to prevent illegal entry and exit and all kinds of crimes. Lieutenant Colonel Hoang Trung Hieu,
political commissar of Ba Son border post, confided: “It’s Tet, everyone wants to be with their families. But for us, ‘staying awake so the people can sleep, standing guard so the people can have fun’, celebrating Tet at the border is an honor and pride because we can contribute a small effort, joining in the common joy of the country”.

Sticking to the mountains and forests, they accepted to put aside their personal happiness, even though they knew that behind them were their old mothers and young children waiting for them. Some comrades had mothers who were seriously ill, and their families were short of people. They felt sorry for their mothers, their wives and children, but could only encourage their loved ones through hurried phone calls and quick leaves that the unit created for them. Some comrades had just gotten married, and the newlyweds still “owed” each other a honeymoon, but they had to put it aside for the sake of the common mission. Each had their own worries, but these soldiers all shared a great will, a fighting spirit, a “love in their hearts and the country on their shoulders”.

The border spring of border guards and soldiers with the local people is always filled with warmth. To grasp the thoughts and aspirations of the people, the Party Committee and commanders of the border posts always focus on implementing the motto "three close, four together" (Stick to the area, stick to the people, stick to policies and eat, live, work and speak the local language together). The border posts also contribute to buying gifts of necessities, warm clothes, blankets, hats... to give to poor households, families with meritorious services, and students.

Border guards also pay special attention to the lives of officers and soldiers, fully prepare food, provisions and regimes according to military regulations; promote production activities; organize cleaning and redecoration of units; contact and coordinate with organizations in the commune and district to come to the unit to wrap Chung cakes, exchange cultural activities on New Year's Eve...

These seemingly small concerns are enough for the soldiers to feel the love that the people and the rear send. Every spring, the villagers bring special gifts to the station, together with the officers and soldiers, to enjoy the "first taste of a new year". Lieutenant Colonel Do Van Phuc, Political Commissar of Po Ma Border Post, said that the two Great Unity houses, built by the post in coordination with units and sponsors, were promptly given to the needy people to welcome a warm and prosperous new year.

The slogan “the station is home, the border is homeland, the people of all ethnic groups are blood brothers” becomes more meaningful every time Tet comes. From the programs “Warm the hearts of the villagers”, “Adopted children of the border station”, “Helping children go to school”…, each soldier feels like they have a warm home, lit by a warm heart, by love and laughter every day.
Baotintuc.vn
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