From cowsheds, sugarcane fields, raising children to become doctors

On the poor land of Phuoc Tich village, Binh Chuong commune ( Quang Ngai ), there is a spacious house that has just been whitewashed. In that house, the farmer couple Ho Ngoc Thanh (70 years old, real name on the documents is Ho Thanh Chat) and Mrs. Nguyen Thi Mien (68 years old), a 3/4 class disabled soldier, sat together, recounting the difficult journey of their lives, when their entire youth was wrapped up in "raising their children to study".

"CALS ARE BORN TO... PAY TUITION FEES"

Looking out into the garden, where the cowshed used to be, Mr. Thanh smiled gently: "Back then, the cows I raised had not yet grown into cows when my son called to ask for money for school fees, so I had to sell the calf early...".

For decades of farming, Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Mien have experienced all the hardships of the poor: growing sugarcane, plowing fields, raising cows, raising pigs... Every season, the couple finds ways to earn money for their children's education. One year, they grew up to 10 sao (5,000 m2 ⁾ of sugarcane, harvesting 35 - 40 tons to sell to the Quang Ngai Sugar Factory. At the same time, they grew 4.5 sao (2,250 m2 ⁾ of rice, cassava, corn... to have enough rice to eat and sell for money to raise their children all year round.

From cowsheds, sugarcane fields, raising children to become doctors - Photo 1.

Farmer Ho Ngoc Thanh (left) talks about his child's education with Mr. Dinh Dung, the Association for Promotion of Education of Binh Chuong Commune (Quang Ngai). PHOTO: PHAM ANH

"There were no machines like now. Back then, we had to hoe by hand and plow the land with oxen. There were days when I came home late at night from cutting sugarcane, my body was exhausted, my hands were blistered, but I still had to wake up early to go to the field. Thinking about my children's school fees, I didn't dare take time off work," Mrs. Mien said, her voice still trembling as she recalled those years.

Not only farming, the couple also raises 7-8 cows, most of which are breeding cows. Every year, every calf born is about 12 months old and must be sold. "Selling a calf is a common thing. Sometimes before we can sell it, we borrow money from the neighbors first. Raising cows, planting sugarcane, plowing the land... all just so our children can learn to read and write," Mrs. Mien said, then smiled softly, her eyes filled with tears.

A LITTLE GIRL AND THE DREAM OF MAKING MEDICINE FOR CANCER PATIENTS

The family was poor, and their five children all understood the situation. The two eldest daughters, Ho Thi Kim Lien and Ho Thi Kim Le, when they were only 14-15 years old, gave up their dream of going to school and went to Ho Chi Minh City to work as a seamstress, sending their meager wages home to help their parents.

"The first month they sent 250,000 VND. I held the money and tears kept falling, both feeling sorry for my children and sorry for myself," Mrs. Mien recalled. That money was the source of life, the faith for her three younger siblings to continue going to school.

When the two eldest daughters got married, the responsibility of raising the remaining three children fell on Mr. and Mrs. Thanh's shoulders. Every day, the two of them went to work from morning to night, all year round without knowing rest. But in return, their children never disappointed their parents. All five were obedient, good students, and especially the youngest daughter, Ho Thi Luu, was the pride of the whole family, going further than what her grandparents had dared to dream of.

Born into poverty, Ho Thi Luu understood from a young age the sweat that fell on her parents' fields. "She was a very good student, good at every subject, and never asked for anything," said Mrs. Mien. During her years at Binh Son High School, Luu was always at the top of her class, won third prize in the provincial chemistry competition, and second prize in the calculator competition. The little girl soon cherished the dream of studying medicine and pharmacy, to find drugs to treat cancer patients.

From cowsheds, sugarcane fields, raising children to become PhDs - Photo 2.

Ho Thi Luu (top row, middle) when defending her thesis at Taipei Medical University (Taiwan). PHOTO: GĐCC

In the first year of university entrance exams, Luu passed two schools: Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy. Her family wanted her to study at the university to "save money", but Luu shook her head: "It's not the field I dream of". So she accepted to drop out of school only to retake the pharmacy exam a year later at Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy, which she thought was "the right path I chose". According to Mrs. Mien, the tuition fee at that time was 40 - 60 million VND/year, the family was very poor, but they still tried.

At the medical school, Luu not only studied well but also loved research. She participated in many scientific competitions, won the second prize in Eureka, the encouragement prize in the 2019 Ho Chi Minh City Technical Innovation Competition, and received a certificate of merit from the Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee.

To earn more money, in her final year of university, she worked as a tutor, so that her parents would not have to send more money. After graduating, Luu became a lecturer at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology. But for her, learning never stops. "Luu said that her knowledge is just the beginning, she must study more to research cancer treatment drugs," Mr. Thanh said about his daughter's dream, his voice mixed with pride.

Pomegranate went to the Philippines to study English, then won a full master's scholarship in Korea and Taiwan. She chose Taipei Medical University (Taiwan), studying biomedical materials and tissue engineering. With excellent academic performance and research, she was retained by the school to continue her doctorate in cell therapy and regenerative medicine.

During her studies, Luu's research on a hybrid nano-drug delivery system between cancer cells and immune cells was ranked among the top 4 outstanding projects in Southeast Asia, receiving a research grant of 12,500 USD from the US. Her research is aimed at treating pancreatic cancer, the cancer with the highest mortality rate today.

Mrs. Mien told about the time when her daughter successfully defended her doctoral thesis, she texted her mother: "Mom, I have fulfilled my dream and your wish to become a doctor!". Now, in the new house that the young doctor used her research award money to build, Mr. and Mrs. Thanh can live in peace in their old age. When recalling the past, they still smile gently: "No matter how hard it is, it is worth it. As long as my daughter becomes a good person, that's all that matters."

Mr. Thanh said that after defending her doctoral thesis, his daughter wants to continue working at medical research institutes in Taiwan to develop nano-medicines to treat cancer, and hopes to cooperate with Vietnamese universities in applied research projects.

From cowsheds, sugarcane fields, raising children to become doctors - Photo 3.

The house of the farmer couple Ho Ngoc Thanh has just been renovated with the help of their youngest daughter. Photo: PA

FROM SUGAR FIELDS TO INTERNATIONAL LECTURER'S

Mr. Dinh Dung, from the Binh Chuong Commune Association for the Promotion of Education, said that every time Tet comes, the locality often invites successful people like Ho Thi Luu to speak to the youth of their hometown to add motivation and encourage children in poor villages to study. Last Tet, Luu was one of the people who spoke to the youth and students who returned to their hometown to celebrate Tet. On October 16, Mr. Dung said that when he contacted Luu, she confirmed that after defending her thesis in Taiwan, she went to the US to continue reporting on this topic. This coming Tet, the Binh Chuong Commune Association for the Promotion of Education will continue to invite Luu to speak to the local youth.

Now, looking back on the past, anyone who knew Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Mien cannot help but be moved. They "sold their calf for tuition" so that one day their youngest daughter could stand on the podium of honor at an international medical university. Their story is not only a journey of raising their children to study, but also a beautiful symbol of the determination and sacrifice of rural fathers and mothers, who spent their whole lives quietly sowing the seeds of knowledge with sweat and tears.

From Ho Thi Luu, we can see that the most important thing to succeed is perseverance and having faith in yourself. No matter how difficult the circumstances are, as long as you do not give up, your dreams will blossom.

Now, in the middle of Binh Chuong field, the small house of Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Mien, the light of knowledge is shining brightly, like the sweetest reward for a hard-working life of a farming couple: Those who grew sugarcane, raised cows, to nurture their child's dream of a doctorate.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tu-chuong-bo-ruong-mia-nuoi-con-thanh-tien-si-185251027180354102.htm