They are the bright stars that silently shine in the night sky, dispelling the cold, darkness of the night with hearts full of love and noble ideals.
Young people act as guides and safety guards for their teammates as they carry out the road patching process inside.
At 11pm, I drove home after a late shift. The usually noisy and bustling asphalt roads were now strangely deserted. In the distance, the roaring sound of a few speed racers approached and then flashed by like lightning, giving me goosebumps. The "clack-clack" sound of bicycles mixed with the "thump-thump" sound of a motorbike that was about to "expire" but still struggled to carry the heavy, stacked bags of goods of the street vendors, like confessions after a hard day's work...
Lost in my thoughts, suddenly the loud honking sound and the continuous "stop" sound made me jump and brake the car. Before I could recover, my eyes widened in surprise when I saw a large group of young men, gathered in groups of five or seven, busily mixing and assembling something along the long road.
After pouring the mixed material into the pothole, use a shovel and trowel to cover it with another layer of material to make it beautiful and level with the road surface.
"Excuse me, ma'am. Could you please go through that way for me? We are busy patching up the potholes to ensure the safety of road users. Thank you very much," a girl's Saigon accent rang out. Standing in the middle of the line, she and 10 young men held hands to form a barrier to protect their teammates as they worked inside.
Hearing "pothole patching" made me curious and excited. I was about to back up and turn the other way, but there was an invisible string holding me back. I pulled the bike to the side of the road and decided to help my friends. Approaching a young man who was running back and forth, directing the young men to work, I guessed he was the team leader and nervously spoke:
Hi, I just got home from work and saw you guys patching the road. I think it's great! Can I help you? Based on our experience patching many times, we have divided it into stages like this to ensure safety and efficiency. Which stage do you want to help with? The stage of mixing materials. Seeing you guys working made my shirt sweat. Can you let me help you? Oh, and what's your name? My name is Thai Minh Thanh (4th year student, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology). The stage you chose is a bit heavy. But you should try it. If you get tired, just tell me, and my friends and I will switch you to another lighter stage.
While watching the group of young men pour material into the pothole, the boy spoke up: "This pothole is a bit big, Thai and Luon should pour another 5cm thick layer and then use a trowel to spread the material back to the same level as the road surface!"
After reminding me, he turned to me, quickly wiped the sweat from his forehead, and smiled brightly: "Sorry, I just got to talk to you now. We're very happy to have your help. There are also working people participating here. I'm just a little worried that the clothes you're wearing will get dirty."
"Oh, it's okay," I replied, rolling up my pants and sleeves to let my friend know I was ready and not afraid of anything. The team leader looked at me for a few seconds, then gave me a thumbs up and smiled in agreement. Taking me around, he introduced the road patching steps, from training, instructing, digging holes, cleaning potholes, mixing cement, pouring materials to preserving potholes after patching, all of which were arranged and calculated very carefully and methodically.
The girls were given shovels by the boys to help mix the ingredients.
Leading me to a group of 5 boys and 2 girls who were taking turns mixing the materials, Thanh told Bao - the group leader of this step - to guide me. As soon as I received the tools from my friends, scooped up some sand and rocks and mixed them with a few shovels, I started to sweat profusely. Looking at a girl who was also mixing with all her might, her clothes were all dirty but her face was still radiant and cheerful. After working for a while, she passed the shovel to a boy who was resting nearby to continue mixing, then came over to me and asked me to go rest.
The moment I let go of the shovel, I felt like I had just dropped a big rock. After a few seconds of fresh air, I was immediately offered water by some enthusiastic young people. Being thirsty, I drank the whole glass in one gulp. Before I could even say anything about how delicious it was, the bright smiles and caring gestures of the friends surprised me, because before that, everyone was exhausted. Where did they get such abundant and positive energy?
As if reading my mind, Bich Hue (4th year student, University of Economics , Ho Chi Minh City) - the girl who just told me to rest, confided: "Before, at this time, I would have rolled into bed to sleep. Or sometimes I would "get angry" and invite my friends to "party" until late at night. But since I got to know Venerable Thich Chan Quang (abbot of Thien Ton Phat Quang in Dinh Mountain, Vung Tau), and heard his heartfelt teachings, the spirit of dedication and wholehearted service for everyone has seeped into our blood. By patching roads, we hope to contribute to protecting the safety of road users, reducing traffic accidents, so that everyone can have a happy smile. Everyone's joy is our joy. That is also the reason why we do not feel tired. No matter how difficult or hard it is, as long as we can contribute something to everyone, to life, we are united and determined to do it."
Hearing what Hue said, my heart suddenly broke. Looking up at the night sky, I couldn't see a single star. But here, where I was standing, there were dozens of stars shining silently, bringing so much faith, love and happiness to life.
Young people happily take pictures after fixing potholes
After filling in more than ten potholes, it was past 1am. We cleaned up together and then parted ways to go home. And on the way home, unlike usual, I felt like I could see the "path". For the first time, true happiness filled my heart.
Before closing my eyes to sleep, my heart was filled with anticipation for next Saturday night, when I would be running with my friends through the streets of Ho Chi Minh City to give food and necessities to the homeless. So a new journey, a new chapter full of joy and happiness had opened. "Thank life every morning I wake up/I have another day to love", I muttered a poem by Kahlil Gibran and then I fell asleep without knowing...
The Eastern Spirit Writing Contest organized by Thanh Nien Newspaper in collaboration with Phu My 3 Specialized Industrial Park is an opportunity for readers to share their deep feelings about the land and people of the Southeast provinces (including Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Dong Nai, Binh Duong , Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Tay Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City), and at the same time contribute good practices, new models, creative and dynamic thinking of Eastern people. Authors can submit entries in the form of essays, memoirs, notes, press reports... for a chance to receive attractive prizes with a total value of up to 120 million VND.
Please send your entries to the email address [email protected] or send them by post to the Thanh Nien Newspaper's editorial office: 268 - 270 Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Vo Thi Sau Ward, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City (clearly write on the envelope: Article participating in the Eastern Spirit Contest). The contest will accept entries until November 15, 2023. Articles selected for publication in Thanh Nien Daily Newspaper and the online newspaper thanhnien.vn will receive royalties according to the editorial office's regulations.
For detailed rules please see here.
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