VietNamNet Bridge
Feb. 1th, 2010

A father’s support has meant son Dinh, who suffers a disability, is now a freshman at the Vietnam Academy of Traditional Medicine.

Both father and son go to school

Ngo Van Bang, 55, and his wife, like many other couples, were so happy when they gave birth to a son. However, they later realized that the son was not normal like other boys. The boy’s limbs were too short and all curled up, and his head was too big. The sadness was so much that his wife became weaker and weaker.

As she lost the ability to work, he alone has to take the responsibility to take care of the whole family.

“I have to hold him tight”

Sitting on a rickety bed in a damp boarding-room, which is only 12 meters square he said with sadness: “I don’t blame it on anyone. My only thought is to bring my son up and give him my love so that he doesn’t feel self-pity”.

When Dinh turned four, his large head and motionless limbs made his father worry so much. Bang took the child to all hospitals but all he was offered was sympathy.

Luckily, when Dinh was five he could finally stand up and learn to walk. The son’s quivering and slow footsteps made his father cry. “His limbs were not equal so he could only walk lame”, he said.

Dinh insisted on going to school. He said: “Only knowledge can change one’s destiny and make society better”

Dinh successfully persuaded his father. Despite all the hardships the father regularly carried his son on his back to school. Aware of his parents’ hard work to bring him up, Dinh tried his best to study. He received the title of ‘good student’ in all 12 years of general school.

“Dinh likes natural science subjects but he is also good at literature. When he was in secondary school, he was chosen to attend advanced classes to prepare for competitions for excellent students. However, his body was too small and he also wrote quite slowly, so the teachers sometimes advised him to give way to other students,” his father said.

There were many sad memories during the time when Dinh went to school. They include being mocked by other children or being discriminated against by some teachers.

“But the most memorable one happened when I took him to Hanoi to sit the university entrance exam” – Mr. Bang recalled – “Dinh often falls ill when the weather changes, so I had to take him here over one week earlier so that he could get adapted to the conditions. But it made no difference. In all two examinations (the first was to Agriculture University and the second was to Vietnam Academy of Traditional Medicine), he was seriously ill. I had to roll him up in a curtain and carry him on my back to the examination places. Many people felt sorry for him. They offered to give him a lift, but I was afraid that he would fall because of his weak body so I kindly refused.

The problems didn’t end there. The desk was not only high but also far from the chair so Dinh had to stand while doing the exam.

“Dinh can’t sleep alone at night and I have to stay with him. He often gets startled so I have to hold him tight and soothe him. He fears water, if I leave him to take a bath alone he’d probably be ill.

Put the sadness aside

Despite the adversity, the news that the tiny boy has passed exams to both universities once more stirred up the small village of Vinh Thanh. He was the pride of not only Dinh and his family, but also the whole village.

However, it has also meant a heavier burden on the father. Bang has to arrange his time and work to bring the boy to university everyday

Luckily, Bang arranged to do the cleaning work in Traditional Medicine University. He works from 3 to 7 in the morning and from 6 to 9 in the evening and gets 1.3 million dong per month.

Previously, they stayed free at the house of Mr Le Dinh Yen, one of the university’s teachers, but now the house had been sold. Because of that, it takes them 500,000VND every month to pay for rent, electricity and water.

Ngo Van Binh, Dinh’s brother, decided to give up school and work as a mechanic to earn money for Dinh to continue his studies.

”I wanted to save money, but Dinh is so weak, he has to have adequate food and live in good conditions. Meanwhile, everything in Hanoi is so expensive, I can’t afford to pay for it by myself”, said the father. In fact, at first, he did not agree with the first son, but then he could do nothing about the decision.