My idol

A gust of wind swept through, carrying the summer with it. Looking at the raindrops, my heart suddenly longed for home – the place where my father's image lingered. Like many young people far from home these days, I go to work in the morning and return to my rented room in the evening. Every night, I hug my computer to finish some unfinished work from the company. This vicious cycle repeats itself day after day. Many weeks have passed since I last called my father. The vegetables he planted behind the house must have been harvested by now. The chickens he bought from Uncle Twenty-Two months ago have probably grown into young hens or perhaps laid two or three clutches of eggs... The last time I visited my father was three months ago. As I got on the bus back to the city, he slipped two hundred thousand dong into my jacket pocket and waved his hand, "Hurry up or you'll miss the bus, daughter." Two tears welled up in my eyes without me realizing it. Looking into his eyes, I understood everything. My father may be poor in money, but he is always overflowing with love, he just doesn't show it outwardly. In my father's eyes, I will always be just a child.

The day my mother left me and my father to be with someone else, my father was choked with grief, unable to speak. He carried me on his back, running across the fragrant rice fields. The scent of young rice was gentle and soothing. The path through the fields in this countryside holds so many memories of my family. There, my father carried goods for my mother, my mother carried me in her arms, and the whole family went to town amidst the heartfelt laughter of early mornings. At that time, I was too young to understand the pain my father went through. He never once blamed my mother; instead, he blamed himself for being too poor, forcing her to remarry.

In the neighborhood, my father did whatever work he could find. To earn money for my schooling, he didn't shy away from any job. As a child, he was very strict in his upbringing. He spent little time with me because he was busy with work all day. At night, he would fall asleep without me even noticing. After finishing my homework, I would often lie beside him and whisper. I would tell him about school, about the bullying, about the teacher wanting to see him because I broke Nam's tooth for saying I didn't have a mother. But I didn't know that he listened to all the rambling stories I told him and silently wept in the night. Perhaps he was someone who never often said "I love you," but he still gave me the best of everything.

Aunt Năm from the lower village, a widow, secretly loved my father. Both families hoped they would become a couple. I also wanted my father to bring her home to live with him so he would have companionship in his old age. They could take care of each other during bad weather. I could then focus on my work in the city and visit him occasionally. However, my father absolutely refused. Perhaps he still loved my mother and feared causing Aunt Năm suffering. In his mind, he felt he was poor and couldn't bring happiness to another woman.

At this hour, Dad is probably sitting alone at the dinner table with a few fried shrimp and some boiled vegetables. He's worked hard all his life, but poverty has clung to him year after year. Wiping away the tears welling up in my eyes, I called him in the quiet night. And that smile, that look in his eyes, soothed my fragile heart. Dad, one day soon, I'll bring you to live with me in the city. We'll be together forever. You'll always be my idol.

Hello, dear viewers! Season 4, themed "Father," officially launches on December 27, 2024, across four media platforms and digital infrastructures of Binh Phuoc Radio and Television and Newspaper (BPTV), promising to bring to the public the wonderful values of sacred and beautiful fatherly love.
Please send your touching stories about fathers to BPTV by writing articles, personal reflections, poems, essays, video clips, songs (with audio recordings), etc., via email to chaonheyeuthuongbptv@gmail.com, Editorial Secretariat, Binh Phuoc Radio and Television and Newspaper Station, 228 Tran Hung Dao Street, Tan Phu Ward, Dong Xoai City, Binh Phuoc Province, phone number: 0271.3870403. The deadline for submissions is August 30, 2025.
High-quality articles will be published and shared widely, with payment for their contributions, and prizes will be awarded upon completion of the project, including one grand prize and ten outstanding prizes.
Let's continue writing the story of fathers with "Hello, My Love" Season 4, so that stories about fathers can spread and touch everyone's hearts!

Source: https://baobinhphuoc.com.vn/news/19/174414/than-tuong-cua-con