Nguyen Van Danh (born in 1976) is a teacher who has been working for 20 years at Nam Nga Primary and Secondary Boarding School for Ethnic Minorities, Ta Tong Commune, Muong Te District, Lai Chau Province. He is one of many teachers from the lowlands who are willing to devote their youth and enthusiasm to "sow letters in the clouds", bringing the light of knowledge to the highlands.
Photo taken in 2016 at a school in the village
The will of a young teacher
Born and raised in Hoa Binh, after graduating from the College of PrimaryEducation , Mr. Nguyen Van Danh became a local teacher. During a year of working in his hometown, he always wanted to do something meaningful. With the support and encouragement of his family and the inspiration of his predecessors, Mr. Danh decided to submit an application to the Department of Education and Training of Lai Chau province. In October 2004, Mr. Danh was assigned to work at Ta Tong School No. 2 (now Nam Nga), Ta Tong Commune, Muong Te District.
Although he had prepared himself mentally, Mr. Danh still felt "overwhelmed" by the hardships and difficulties here. That day, from Po Lech bridge, Mr. Danh had to continue walking to the main school. The path was narrow, sometimes steep, sometimes slippery, extremely dangerous. People here often called it "the road for buffaloes and cows". He left in the morning but did not reach Ta Tong 1 until 5:00 p.m. During the whole journey, Mr. Danh was guided, encouraged and shared by Mr. Vu Dinh Vang (from Hai Duong ), the vice principal at that time. Stopping at Ta Tong 1, Mr. Vang instructed him to prepare food and drinks to enter Ta Tong 2. The first leg of the journey was difficult, but the second leg was even more difficult. The backpack he was using had to be replaced with a military backpack to ensure sturdiness and convenience. The second day's journey was shorter, but we had to crawl, climb uphill, and hold on to whatever we could, so we didn't get there until late evening.
School year 2016
That dinner with Mr. Danh was a dinner that he would probably never forget in his entire life. That day, Mr. Danh ate with the teachers at Ta Tong 2, everyone was warm and sincere. The teachers looked at Mr. Danh with both love and worry, afraid that he was so young and would not be able to stay here. One teacher asked: "The facilities here are still poor, only wooden walls, temporary bamboo walls like this, no phone signal, language barrier and countless other difficulties, can you stay here?"
"Now that I think about it, would it be worthy of a man to leave? Why can the teachers here stick around for so many years but I can't?"... Teacher Danh kept thinking like that, determined that he had to do it at all costs, he couldn't let down the trust of the teachers who had guided him and the family who had encouraged him.
When he missed home the most, especially during the holidays, even a tough guy who often smiled like him would have tears in his eyes. In the first month away from home, he wrote letters every day but often could not send them because there was no one to go to the commune. The telegrams from outside took a month to arrive. Many times, Mr. Danh had to encourage himself to be patient and steadfast. Seeing the tiny children crossing many mountains and streams to get to class still smiling, seeing his colleagues patiently instructing the students little by little despite the language barrier, Mr. Danh was determined to stay in the village and school.
Sow words in the clouds
When he first came to Ta Tong, Mr. Danh did not know the ethnic language, so for the first 6 years he worked at the main school. After that, he went to Pa Kha and U Na villages, and in 2023, he continued to work in Nam Nga.
Nam Nga Boarding Primary and Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities has students who are all children of Mong and Ha Nhi ethnic groups in Nam Nga, U Na, Tia Ma Mu, Pa Kha, Nam Dinh, Xe Ma, Cao Chai villages. In the early years when Mr. Danh worked here, the school was mainly made of bamboo and firewood walls, making the most of natural light because there was no electricity. For many years, both teachers and students struggled with the sun and wind to bring "letters" to light the way for the future.
Mid-Autumn Festival 2023
In 2010, Nam Nga Central School began to have access to the site, and in 2016, electricity was provided. Teachers no longer had to use turbine generators plugged into streams, and the lives of both teachers and students gradually improved. In 2018, the image of teachers and students of Nam Nga School opening a new school year on the banks of a stream in the press was shared by the online community, causing many people to feel sad and heartbroken. At the satellite schools of Nam Nga Boarding Primary and Secondary School, many students still have to study in temporary classrooms.
In 2020, students at the main school had a spacious boarding area thanks to the support of the government, the government, and the joint efforts of philanthropists and sponsors.
The teachers here believe that the students have traveled dozens of kilometers to come to them, the people trust them, as teachers we must devote ourselves wholeheartedly so as not to feel ashamed of our profession. Mr. Danh, like many other teachers, is tirelessly sowing letters on the high mountains with chalk, and at night taking care of the children's meals and bathing. The teachers are both mothers, fathers, and teachers, not hesitating to do anything.
Feeling sorry for the children who cannot eat white rice or noodles, the teachers cooperated with volunteer units to improve their meals. The green vegetable beds, the pigs and chickens are taken care of by teachers and students together to nurture their dreams of a better future.
The words on the clouds will turn into rainbows
Having been attached to Nam Nga for 20 years, Mr. Danh has witnessed the changes of this land, the maturity of each generation of students. Thanks to the attention of the government, the Department of Education and Training, and the teachers who went before, the path of bringing knowledge to each remote village has been given more motivation. Mr. Danh said that he feels very small, he is just like other teachers, what he does is the conscience of his profession. The path he has taken is not one he has taken alone but has been supported by many people from all levels of government to social organizations and people.
Mr. Danh - right cover
The villagers have the knowledge and skills to study and gradually reduce their backward customs. Life will not only revolve around the stream and fields but can go further, reaching new lands. Now there are many students from Nam Nga school who are students, cadres, teachers... They are the ones who are bringing hopeful changes to this land every day.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nguoi-geo-chu-tren-may-185241011143940896.htm
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