Blowing the soul into coconut leaves
In the vibrant life of Ben Ninh Kieu, the image of a disabled woman with her winding hands "breathing life" into the seemingly lost coconut leaves, creating unique handicrafts, has become a special highlight.
Artisan Do Thi Ngoc (53 years old, Binh Thuy district, Can Tho city), a woman who has been involved in the craft of making handmade items from coconut leaves for 15 years. Born into a poor family, Ms. Ngoc was unfortunately paralyzed after a fever at the age of 5. It seemed that the harsh fate had taken away her future, but with extraordinary determination, she overcame everything.
Ms. Ngoc said that the fate of coconut leaves came by chance. While weaving the conical hats for hire, she accidentally picked up the coconut conical hats left by tourists. Seeing the excitement, she researched the method, by removing each part, learning the process by heart and rebuilding each stage to complete it.
Since 2010, every morning, Ms. Ngoc has traveled by three-wheeled vehicle to Benh Kieu (Ninh Kieu District, Can Tho City) to sit and tie coconut leaves, creating rustic, simple products and welcoming tourists.
With her skillful hands, she creates many unique products such as: fashion hats, handbags, helicopters, roses, fish, crabs, birds, loaches, etc. Each product is meticulously and carefully crafted by her, imbued with the culture of the Mekong Delta.
To pursue this career, Ms. Ngoc has received great support from her family, especially her husband. He is a volunteer at the Association of People with Disabilities, where Ms. Ngoc is currently working. Every day, he helps her find coconut leaf ingredients so that she can stick with and stabilize with the job.
Unique tourism gifts
Many tourists expressed their excitement and admiration for Ms. Ngoc's talent and determination. Ms. Thanh Nhan, a tourist from Dong Nai, shared: I am very impressed with Ms. Ngocs handmade coconut leaf products. I bought coconut leaf hats as gifts for my relatives and felt happy to have contributed to supporting a determined artisan like her.
The products are sold by Ms. Ngoc at prices ranging from 10,000 - 20,000 VND/piece. Of which, coconut leaf hats cost 20,000 VND/piece, the remaining products are only 10,000 VND/piece. On average, Ms. Ngoc sells more than 10 products per day, earning about 200,000 VND. Thanks to that, she has money to take care of her children's education and cover their living expenses.
Ms. Ngoc's coconut leaf products are not only loved by tourists for their uniqueness and sophistication but also for the story of the extraordinary determination of artisans. Each hat, crab or coconut leaf flower contains her passion, love for the job and aspiration to rise up.
In particular, at the city's cultural and tourism programs and events, Ms. Ngoc is often invited to participate in handicraft performances to serve people and tourists. She is one of the artisans who is passionate about her profession, always spending a lot of time and effort to preserve and pass on Tay Do cultural values to the younger generation.
