ONE ARM, ONE HEART
Ms. Tuyet, whose full name is Vo Thi Tuyet, is 56 years old and currently works as a teacher at the Center for Supporting Inclusive Education for People with Disabilities (108 Ly Chinh Thang Street, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City). Having lost her right arm when she was just over one year old due to bombs during the war, Ms. Tuyet's posture has always been tilted to the right. This is a result of years of doing housework, caring for, and carrying her five younger siblings with only her left arm. To provide support for them, she always has to lean to the right.
Ms. Tuyet and her students' special gift on November 20th.
Many were moved to silence by the sight of teacher Vo Thi Tuyet's early intervention session at the center, witnessing the small, frail figure struggling to cradle a hyperactive child whose back was bent to one side. One day, a student she hadn't seen in a long time bit her shoulder until it bled. The pain was so intense that Tuyet cried. But amidst the tears, there was also joy, as the child had begun to understand the affection she felt for her teacher.
"I only have one left arm, and throughout my childhood in Phu Dien commune, Tan Phu district, Dong Nai province, I kept asking my parents why they weren't in a place free from bombs and bullets so I could have two arms like my friends. But my father replied that he and my mother had returned from the war. To have peace like today, my grandfather and many comrades sacrificed their lives. I only lost one arm, but I'm alive, I'm intelligent, and that's something very precious. I have to live a life worth living," Ms. Tuyet confided about her life.
Despite having only one arm, Ms. Tuyet was taught by her mother how to cook rice, prepare fish, and carry her younger siblings. She could single-handedly pull and lift a heavy cast-iron pot onto the wood-fired stove. Her father taught her how to ride a bicycle, a daily round trip of 50 km, traversing many rugged hills to reach high school. Fate has challenged her countless times, but Ms. Tuyet has persevered to stand firmly on her own two feet and pursue her dream of becoming a teacher.
A PILLAR OF SUPPORT FOR PARENTS WITH CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES
After graduating with a Bachelor of Education in Literature from Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, Ms. Tuyet worked at an orphanage in Dong Nai . Returning to Ho Chi Minh City, she has been involved with the Center for Supporting Inclusive Education Development for People with Disabilities (formerly known as the Center for Research on Education for Children with Disabilities) for over 20 years.
Despite having only one arm, teacher Tuyet has never stopped being passionate about learning and working for children.
Ms. Tuyet has been studying and working simultaneously for many years and currently holds a second degree in special education from Ho Chi Minh City University of Education. This one-armed teacher has also completed numerous courses and holds certificates from Ho Chi Minh City University of Education in educating children with learning difficulties; completed a course on the "Early Intervention" program for children with intellectual disabilities; and completed a 3.5-year course on "Family Systems Psychotherapy" from Belgium, in collaboration with Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine. She is also a participant in the "Psychomotor Therapy" practical training program organized by Belgium.
Living in Xuan Thoi Son commune, Hoc Mon district, Ho Chi Minh City, Ms. Tuyet leaves home at 5:30 a.m. every day with a lunchbox, walks to the bus station, takes two bus routes to get to work, and only returns home late at night. But she shares that she still wants to study so she can help more children with disabilities.
"Working with children with disabilities requires not only a compassionate and loving heart, but also a sound understanding. Everything we do to support and educate them, and every conversation and consultation we have with parents, must be based on scientific evidence. Loving them in the wrong way is a crime against them," Ms. Tuyet said.
The 56-year-old teacher still vividly remembers the story of a parent. The couple were very successful, and they had a baby girl with Down syndrome. Desperate and unwilling to accept their child, the wife had considered ending the baby's life at least three times, but failed. She once stood on the top floor of a hospital, intending to jump into the dark abyss below, but the screams of her daughter stopped her. During that counseling session, Ms. Tuyet didn't immediately offer scientific advice on how to care for and raise a child with Down syndrome. Instead, she told the mother about her own journey: a child with only one arm who grew up amidst the desolate fields of Phu Dien, Tan Phu District, Dong Nai Province, and how the boundless love of her parents gave her the life she has today.
Suddenly, the mother burst into tears, hugging Ms. Tuyet and sobbing, thanking her profusely. For many mothers and fathers, giving birth to a child with special needs, a child with a disability, is difficult to accept and they don't know what to do or where to begin to live. Ms. Tuyet provides them with a pillar of support. She always emphasizes that children with disabilities need early intervention. The earlier the intervention, the more significant progress the children make; they learn self-care skills, become self-sufficient, and contribute more to society.
"No matter what, you're still our child."
Every student that Ms. Tuyet has mentored and supported calls her "Mom." Ms. Tuyet doesn't remember how many children she has had, not only in Ho Chi Minh City but also in many provinces and cities she has traveled through during her more than 20 years in the profession.
Every year on November 20th, Teachers' Day, many students are brought to the center by their parents to visit their teacher. Some children stand in the courtyard, aiming directly at her office and shouting, "Ms. Tuyet, it's me!" She keeps all the cards her students give her, even though they are just scribbled hearts and clumsily colored flowers, but she knows they represent a long journey of effort from the children. Once, a student with functional autism wrote a descriptive essay about a beloved younger sibling, and he described Ms. Tuyet so touchingly: "My teacher's name is Tuyet. My teacher has one hand. My teacher sings very well. She knows how to play 5, 10, she knows how to make a cow, and she even knows how to play on the slide…"
"For me, all the letters, cards, or midnight phone calls from parents boasting, 'Teacher, my child can talk now,' 'Teacher, my child can bathe themselves now,' are the most precious gifts. It's like parents are inviting me to a fancy meal, and it makes me feel elated," the teacher said emotionally.
The teacher, who recently received the Vo Truong Toan Award from the Ho Chi Minh City education sector, said she wanted to say something on this special day. Her words were the heartfelt sentiments of children receiving special education – inclusive education: "Parents, please love me. No matter what, I am still your child. If I am loved and taught properly, I will have my own good qualities, and I will have things that will make you love me even more."
The daughter follows in her mother's footsteps.
Ms. Tuyet has a happy family with a loving husband and two dutiful children. Her youngest son works in the restaurant and hotel industry. Her eldest daughter, who admires her mother for having only one arm but always dedicating herself to helping disabled children, studied health sciences and is currently a technician at the Rehabilitation and Assistance Center for Disabled Children at 38 Tu Xuong Street, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City.
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