What's fun about living in the countryside?

There was a time when the villages of Quang Nam were just places to remember, while the city was the destination of youthful dreams. But in recent years, a wave of "going against the grain" has been quietly spreading.

Pham Thi Duy My's joy comes from living and working in her hometown. Photo: LP

For Ms. Phan Thi Ha in the countryside along the Thu Bon River, her mornings begin with the sound of roosters crowing and the aroma of grapefruit essential oil. For more than four years, her work has revolved around grapefruit, the raw material for distilling essential oil, fermented grapefruit juice, grapefruit wine, and many other products of the Phong Nguyen Agricultural Cooperative, where she is the director.

Few would imagine that the young woman nimbly sorting through thousands of pomelos once lived for many years in bustling Saigon. Back then, she worked as an accountant for a private company, commuting to work in the mornings and returning to her small rented room exhausted in the evenings. Her salary wasn't low, but feelings of exhaustion and loneliness grew stronger. "There were days when I finished work late, and all I wanted to do was lie still in my room. I started wondering what I was living for," Ms. Ha recalled.

Ms. Ha's decision to return to her hometown surprised her family. Friends regretted the loss of a stable job in the city. But for her, her hometown opened another door: being close to her parents, watching her children grow up surrounded by nature, and doing what she truly wanted. She recounted that in 2022, upon returning home, the local area was implementing a program to renovate unproductive orchards to grow pomelos, so she decided to establish a cooperative to purchase pomelos from the Nong Son, Dai Loc, and Tien Phuoc regions for production. Each year, the cooperative purchases about 3-4 tons of pomelos from local people to process into various products. The main markets are currently Da Nang, Hanoi , and Ho Chi Minh City, through social media and online sales.

Ms. Pham Thi Duy My from Duy Xuyen commune is also one of the young people who have found that way of life for themselves. A few years ago, she established the Duy Oanh Green Agriculture Cooperative, specializing in the production of brown rice tea, cereal flour, brown rice flour, brown rice cakes, brown rice bars, and seaweed. Each year, the cooperative supplies about 5 tons of products to the market, generating revenue of over 1.5 billion VND. Notably, in 2025, Duy Oanh's dried lotus seeds and centella and mung bean powder products achieved OCOP 4-star status.

The cooperative currently collaborates with local farmers to develop raw material areas for rice, sesame, lotus, and beans, creating jobs for many workers in her hometown. For Ms. My, the valuable thing is not just the revenue or orders from all over, but the feeling of living and working right in her homeland. She shared: "In my hometown, I can go to the fields in the morning to check on the raw materials, have lunch with my family, and then go to the factory to work in the afternoon. Life isn't too hectic, but every day feels meaningful."

According to Ms. My, many people used to think that there were few opportunities for development in the countryside, but when she started working with local agricultural products and selling them through social media, she realized that rural areas are different now. Young people can still do business, connect with customers everywhere, while maintaining a lifestyle close to family and nature. These things have made her life more fulfilling.

In many rural areas of Da Nang , an increasing number of young people are returning to start new lives. Among them are many who once endured years of working the "676 formula," meaning leaving home at 6 am and returning at 7 pm six days a week, only to realize they were sacrificing too much for the daily grind. They return to their hometowns and find happiness sometimes simply in an afternoon stroll through the fields or a meal with loved ones.

Perhaps that's why more and more young people are beginning to view their hometowns with a different perspective. While in the past, their hometowns were places they had to leave in search of a better future, now the countryside has become a space where they can choose a slower but higher-quality lifestyle. And most importantly, for many young people, returning home is no longer a last resort, but a place where they truly see their future and find peace.

Source: https://baodanang.vn/o-que-co-gi-vui-3338768.html