One time meeting many memorable stories
I think one of the reasons I chose journalism was because I had the privilege of going to many places, meeting many people, listening to countless stories in this world. The longer I worked, the more I realized that not every meeting was the same. There are meetings that are a source, there are meetings that are a last resort, but there are also meetings after leaving that you feel the need to live a little differently, live more slowly, deeper and appreciate the freedom and peace of today.
That is my feeling after the conversation with Ms. Dang Minh Chau (daughter of the late Deputy Prime Minister Dang Viet Chau) and Associate Professor, Meritorious Artist Vu Thu Giang - two children who took a photo with Uncle Ho in the Viet Bac Military Region in 2013.
One day in May, on the occasion of the 135th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh's birthday, I and reporter Viet Anh visited a house on Tong Dan street - where Ms. Dang Minh Chau lived. In the noisy capital, a woman nearly 80 years old took us to a small room and showed us special photos taken with Uncle Ho that had been carefully preserved for decades and had a wall frame.
That day, Ms. Vu Thu Giang also traveled more than 10 kilometers to come and recall memories, when they were both 8-9 years old and not everyone had a photo of honor. I remember that morning taking place slowly in the hasty, noisy capital. The two girls talked about the memories of being photographed with Uncle Ho very excitedly but always reminded us that they were just ordinary people, just a little bit lucky and honoreder than their friends at that time.
Although 70 years have passed, being able to meet, take photos, and have a simple meal with Uncle Ho still leaves a strong impression on the minds of both women who have now become grandmothers and great-grandmothers. Having met Uncle Ho once, but carrying that memory with them for the rest of their lives and becoming a motivation for life, is something to be proud of for the two sisters to preserve until today.
For Ms. Vu Thu Giang, meeting Uncle Ho became the motivation for her to strive tirelessly to be worthy of the title "good uncle Ho's cousin", which was also a guideline for her to strive to become an Associate Professor, an Excellent Teacher. As for Ms. Dang Minh Chau, Uncle Ho's thriftiness is what makes her always remember and learn constantly.
"The photos of Dang Minh Chau and I with Uncle Ho have been hung around the school, so I feel very honored and proud. That is what I have strived for throughout my time studying and working because I carry the awareness of taking a photo with Uncle Ho" - Ms. Vu Thu Giang said, holding the photo of her childhood.
I once heard journalist Nguyen Ha talk about his meeting with Hero Pham Tuan - the first Vietnamese person to fly into space exactly 45 years ago (July 23, 1980). I had many images of the moment I met a "person who had flown into the universe" and in the heart of journalist Nguyen Ha, that man was associated with something great and distant. "But when I met Pham Tuan, I saw a very approachable, simple and calm person. That is what made the meeting more memorable than I had ever expected. He recounted the journey to touch space not as an epic, but as the story of a soldier assigned a task, calm, meticulous and full of responsibility. I still remember, when thinking about the emotions when the ship flew, he emotionally said: "I have watched the land and sky of the Fatherland hundreds, thousands of times from the cockpit of the plane, now watching from the altitude of the universe, my heart is filled with joy mixed with a bit of choking: The homeland has raised its wings for me to fly".
For journalist Nguyen Ha, that meeting gave her many lessons about resilience, modesty, and how to live worthy of what her father's generation has overcome. The universe may be far away, but the living example of Pham Tuan is very close, almost the trusting eye that he gives to the younger generation today. And I know, for a journalist, such meetings are immeasurable valuable provisions.
Listen to spread
"There are meetings that make time silent" - journalist Tran Vuong told me like that, when recounting the interview with witnesses from the heroic history of the nation. That was Professor Le Thi - the woman who pulled the red flag with a yellow star at the 1945 Independence Declaration Ceremony. When talking, the woman was over 90. Although her limbs were shaking and her eyes were blurred, she still remembered every detail of the day Uncle Ho read the Declaration of Independence in Ba Dinh Square.
"Due to her old age, Professor Le Thi passed away in 2020 at the age of 95. For the past decades, until returning to the dust, she had lived a life worthy of her mission as the one who raised the national flag on September 2, 1945 . I still remember when I was alive, mentioning the moment the flag reached its peak, flying in the autumn wind and August sunshine, she still said that only then could she breathe a sigh of relief. A person who was present at that moment but was still afraid that he would not complete his task, then we, the ones who told him, were not allowed to be reckless" - he said. Journalist Tran Vuong also met with Meritorious Teacher Do Ca Son - former Lieutenant of Battalion 251, Regiment 174, Company 316, fighting all day and night on A1 Hill in the Dien Bien Phu campaign "famous in five continents, shaking the world".
"When I heard him talk about the fierceness on the battlefield, I couldn't help but ask if he was ever afraid of death? His answer surprised me because there was no doubt: "Not that our soldiers are ever afraid of death or not, but always, all of us, Dien Bien soldiers, want to live until the day of victory. As for me, I want to live until the day of victory to return to see my mother, my brothers and sisters, and my relatives." I have quoted this answer in my article, an answer that does not have any words but each word shows the determination to win back. I think history does not need too flashy words, just let us respect and spread so that the next generation can never forget the merits of the previous generation" - journalist Tran Vuong said.
