Making a living on the streets

Despite being paralyzed in both legs since childhood, Mr. Nguyen Van Thien (60 years old), residing in Rach Gia ward, still works diligently and strives to improve his life. Waking up at 5 a.m., Mr. Thien leaves his rented room to sell lottery tickets. People at Tac Rang market are very familiar with the sight of this small, frail man with disabled legs selling lottery tickets at the corner of Ngo Gia Tu street. Sharing his story, Mr. Thien said: “I have been disabled since childhood; my legs are atrophied and I cannot walk normally. I learned to move around using only my hands to be able to live independently. Because of my disability and difficulty walking, no one would hire me, so I chose to sell lottery tickets to earn an income to support myself.”

Mr. Thien's daily struggle for survival begins early in the morning and ends late at night before he returns to his rented room. Living alone, he only hopes to earn enough each day to cover his living expenses and rent. Every day, he takes 250 lottery tickets to various markets to sell. At each market, he has a fixed spot where regular customers can stop by to buy. Luckily, passersby take pity on him and buy tickets, allowing him to earn a profit of 250,000 dong.

Mr. Thien shared: “Selling lottery tickets is much more difficult now than before because there are so many people selling them! It's hard for me to move around, so it's difficult to reach customers. The income from selling lottery tickets is unstable; I only make 1,000 dong profit per ticket, and on good days I can earn 200,000-250,000 dong. Sunny days are better, but on rainy days there are fewer people on the road, making it harder to sell. Some days I don't sell much, and I only have enough money to cover food and medicine. Once, on my way to sell, someone robbed me of 60 lottery tickets; I didn't make any profit that day.” Despite the difficulties and hardships, Mr. Thien still tries to stick with the job to make ends meet.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong has been selling sticky rice at her stall for over 30 years. Photo: TIEU DIEN

Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong, a resident of Rach Gia ward, has been selling sticky rice for over 30 years. When I met her, she was sitting by the roadside selling sticky rice and corn sticky rice. As soon as a customer came to buy, Ms. Huong quickly wrapped the rice for them. Ms. Huong said, "Today is Monday, the beginning of the week. This morning I sell sticky rice near the sidewalk because that stretch of road is busy with people going to the market. I take advantage of the peak hours to sell my goods."

Mrs. Huong's family's livelihood depends on the income she earns from selling sticky rice. When she was younger, she would roam the streets and alleys of Rach Gia ward every day selling sticky rice, rain or shine. Later, as she got older, she only sold sticky rice at a fixed location in Rach Soi market. For over a year now, Mrs. Huong has moved to sell sticky rice at Tac Rang market. Mrs. Huong shared: “Street vendors and small traders like us have quite unstable incomes. On good days, I earn a few hundred thousand dong, on bad days, just a few tens of thousands dong to make ends meet. There are also days when I carry my sticky rice everywhere and don't sell a single packet. My greatest joy each day is selling all my sticky rice.” Thanks to this sticky rice business, Mrs. Huong raised four children. Now that her children are grown, Mrs. Huong continues her work, earning extra income to support her children and grandchildren.

Every day, street vendors, small traders, lottery ticket sellers, and others, regardless of the weather, weave through the narrow streets and alleys from early morning until late at night. Despite the hardships of making a living, they strive to work hard to improve their families' lives.

SMALL FIELD

Source: https://baoangiang.com.vn/muu-sinh-he-pho-a484808.html