Every spring, people in alley 147 Le Dinh Can street (Tan Tao ward, Binh Tan district, Ho Chi Minh city) feel warmed by the kindness of Mr. Le Tuan Gian, 82 years old.
For the past 10 years, Mr. Tu Gian - the owner of 15 rented rooms - has regularly spent his own money to buy Tet gifts for his tenants, sharing a little bit of affection during the last days of the year.
He confided: "This year the economy is difficult, but I still try to maintain, taking out about three million VND from my own pocket to buy necessities as Tet gifts for the children."
One morning at the end of the year, an 82-year-old man drove his old Cub to the supermarket to choose practical gifts. After the supermarket staff helped him deliver the goods to his home, Mr. Tu Gian carefully divided the gifts into 15 gifts, each worth 200,000 VND, preparing to give them to his tenants on the day of giving.
For Mr. Tu Gian, the gifts are small but contain sincere feelings: "They have worked hard all year, I am a landlord and I have a small gift to send everyone for Tet, not much but it is a little love between people".
Ms. Tran Thi Huyen (from Dong Thap) has stayed at Mr. Tu's house for 6 Tet holidays, and emotionally said: "The first year, I had just moved in for a few months and received gifts. During the past few years of the epidemic, Mr. Tu did not even charge rent and gave me extra money." Ms. Huyen added that she treasured each Tet gift from Mr. Tu and brought it back to her hometown, because "not every landlord can do that."
Mr. Tu's kindness spreads beyond just Tet gifts. Ms. Huyen recounted a touching story on the day of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Mr. Tu and his daughter brought 120 million VND to support the disadvantaged in the neighborhood, each person giving 300,000 VND.
Mr. Tu Gian shared his simple happiness when he saw his tenants happily bringing gifts home for Tet: "For me, helping people and giving is the greatest joy right now. Whenever I have the conditions, I will continue."
Mr. Tu Gian's kindness has warmed the hearts of many poor workers, especially during the Tet holiday.
