Deep and profound gratitude

In mid-July 2025, early in the morning, a silvery rain poured down. On National Highway 14, the asphalt ahead of our vehicle shimmered with water. We, veterans and wounded soldiers from various localities in Dong Nai province, were visiting and presenting gifts to Heroic Vietnamese Mother Tran Thi Bay (99 years old, residing in Hamlet 7, Bom Bo Commune).

Veterans from the province visit Heroic Vietnamese Mother Tran Thi Bay in Hamlet 7, Bom Bo Commune. Photo: Duy Hien

From the Bom Bo commune market intersection to Mother Bay's house is nearly 8 kilometers of road, with sections paved and others concrete. The driver of the 7-seater car is a veteran with seasoned driving skills. He carefully avoids potholes on the road because most of the passengers are elderly veterans. Also visiting Mother Tran Thi Bay this time is journalist Pham Quang, who works at Dong Nai Newspaper and Radio and Television. For a long time, in programs visiting and giving gifts to Mothers of Vietnamese Heroic Soldiers and in the collection and excavation of remains and graves of martyrs organized by veterans of the Association for Supporting Families of Martyrs in Binh Phuoc province (formerly), journalist Pham Quang has always been present to report on these acts of gratitude and respect for the martyrs. I have known journalist Pham Quang for a long time; he is simple, kind, and has written many moving and humane articles and reports...

Every year on July 27th, the hearts of people throughout the country are filled with sorrow as they remember the heroic martyrs who sacrificed their youth for the independence and unification of the nation. No amount of gratitude or incense offerings can fully repay the debt of honor, as tens of thousands of martyrs' graves remain unmarked.

At 9:30 AM, our group arrived at the home of Vietnamese Heroic Mother Tran Thi Bay. Members of the Executive Committee of the Bom Bo Commune Veterans Association had already arrived early to welcome us. The rain had just passed, leaving a cool, damp breeze, but the house of Vietnamese Heroic Mother Tran Thi Bay was filled with warmth. We gathered around her, inquiring about her health. Mother Bay, visibly moved, said, “I’m so happy you’ve come. I feel much healthier…”

The family of Vietnamese Heroic Mother Tran Thi Bay has two generations of Vietnamese Heroic Mothers: Mother Bay herself and her mother-in-law, Vietnamese Heroic Mother Nguyen Thi Hai. The war against the US to save the country took away Mother Bay's husband (martyr Tran Van Khai) and her only son (martyr Tran Van Cua).

Three times I bid farewell to my sons, twice I wept silently. They never returned, leaving me alone in silence… these lyrics from the song "Homeland" by composer Pham Minh Tuan, set to a poem by Ta Huu Yen, still resonate within each of us. Every soldier, both in peacetime and those who survived the war, is moved to tears, respectfully bowing their heads before the losses and suffering of countless Vietnamese Heroic Mothers who sacrificed their husbands and sons for the independence and unification of the country.

We, the generations of today and tomorrow, are working together every day and every hour to alleviate the pain and loss of Mother Bay. Regiment 719 (Army Corps 16) has built Mother Bay a house of compassion and is also taking care of her health and providing for her. The Party Committee, government, mass organizations, and local people regularly show concern and care for her every day. A charitable group from Ho Chi Minh City also came to build a clean water well for her use...

Speaking about the activities of honoring Vietnamese Heroic Mothers by local departments, agencies, and organizations, Chairman of the Bom Bo Commune Veterans Association Tran Van Phu said that the Commune Veterans Association, despite being busy with many tasks, still organizes visits to the mothers every year, at least twice a year. These visits are on the anniversary of...
July 27th, War Invalids and Martyrs Day, and Lunar New Year. In addition, local branches, such as the Veterans Association of Village 7, where my mother's family resides, visit her more frequently, including during holidays like April 30th and National Day on September 2nd…

Nguyen Ba Toan, head of the Veterans Association branch in Hamlet 7, said: “We don't wait for holidays or Tet (Lunar New Year). Whenever we have time, we visit Mother Bay, asking about her health and how she's eating. Especially during the rainy season, when the weather is unpredictable, we worry that Mother Bay might not be well at night. I, along with Tran Van Phu and Le Thanh Binh, Vice Presidents of the Veterans Association of the commune, also regularly update each other on Mother Bay's health every day.”

It was deeply moving when veteran and wounded soldier Vu Dinh Luat, on behalf of the delegation, presented a basket of flowers and gifts (cash contributed by the veterans) to Mother of Vietnamese Heroic Soldiers Tran Thi Bay. Veteran and wounded soldier Vu Dinh Luat said emotionally: “Even though we live far away, each in a different place and with different circumstances, some in Dong Xoai ward, others in Dong Phu commune, dozens of kilometers away, we still make time to visit you, Mother. This is our responsibility – we, the soldiers of Uncle Ho, to constantly care for Mother of Vietnamese Heroic Soldiers. You are our faith, you are immortal in our hearts forever.”
We…

Mother Bay smiled with kind eyes: "Today, you children have come to visit me, and I am very happy, but you cannot visit me every day. Because you still have to go fight the enemy..."

We were overwhelmed by Mother Bay's words. In her mind, Mother Bay believed that the soldiers of Uncle Ho's army had to fight the enemy to liberate their homeland. On the land of Phu Quy commune, Cai Lay district, Tien Giang province (now Dong Thap province), countless sons fell in the fierce resistance war against the US, including Mother Bay's husband and only son. Like many mothers of Vietnamese Heroic Soldiers, she didn't cry but silently swallowed her tears. Because she understood that the cause of national liberation and reunification was noble and glorious above all else.

"Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom," my mother deeply understood President Ho Chi Minh's words from the days of fighting against the French and then against the American invaders. One Vietnamese Heroic Mother gave birth to seven children, all of whom went to fight against the Americans and sacrificed their lives one after another. Every Lunar New Year and Independence Day, she would place seven bowls of rice, seven boiled eggs, a plate of salt and pepper, and seven pairs of chopsticks on a tray… Seven incense sticks burning, their white smoke swirling into her eyes and her withered heart.

The work of honoring martyrs and showing special concern for Vietnamese Heroic Mothers is the responsibility of the entire Party, the entire army, and the entire people. Currently, the total number of martyrs in the former Binh Phuoc province is 10,736. Of these, 6,073 are named martyrs and 4,666 are unidentified. Specifically, the Provincial Martyrs' Cemetery (Dong Xoai ward) has 4,760 martyrs (including 1,397 named martyrs and 3,363 unidentified martyrs), and the Binh Long Martyrs' Cemetery has 2,304 martyrs (1,292 named and 1,012 unidentified)...

We lined up one by one to light incense at the altar commemorating the martyrs Tran Van Khai, Tran Van Cua, and Mother of Vietnamese Heroic Soldiers Nguyen Thi Hai. Returning to our seats, we sang "Liberating the South" and "As if Uncle Ho were present on the day of great victory" with Mother Bay. Mother Bay's voice blended with the voices of her children, echoing throughout the house of gratitude. Mother of Vietnamese Heroic Soldiers Tran Thi Bay sang with a clear, trembling voice, deeply moving the spirit of the former resistance land – Bom Bo commune.
hero!...

Duy Hien

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/dong-nai-cuoi-tuan/202507/sau-nang-nghia-tinh-tri-an-1d532c2/