One girl’s dream

After all those years being busy with her teaching career, she is still a quiet teacher, a big sister who dedicates her whole life to her unshakable belief called Kindness. Even when I met her, I still couldn\'t believe that there was a woman with so much energy in this world. I saw in her a great heart, although she humbly said that: she did it because she wanted her students, especially the poor ones, not to be locked in the cramped cage of illiteracy. For many years now, she has made all her effort to nurture her students’ dreams and futures...

Try everything she can to get schooling

Le Thi Lan Anh, born in 1976, living in Tan Binh quarter, Xuan Mai town, Chuong My district, Hanoi, is a victim of war legacies with seemingly unhealable wounds on her body. Everyone in her neighborhood knows her story. They tell about it several times and many come to her to be inspired. Every time I think of her, I think of a fairy tale, something very special these days. Thinking of the house and also the classroom, I think of her, the woman who is persistent with her courses on life skills. Without chalk and board, the students are still happy to study as the classroom is filled with her love. Despite her being unhealthy and disability, she hardly thinks for herself. She only cares for the future of the children, and this is the only thing that makes her so enthusiastic.

I’m not boasting about her. It\'s just because her kindness can make other people \"take their hat off\". Her house has become the home of many friends, parents, and students, many of whom witnessed and heard of what she has done just couldn’t imagine how a girl can be so energetic. Many \"illiterate\" \"stupid\" students come to her, study, listen, grow, and become useful citizens. When I came to her class, especially seeing her philanthropical acts for the community with a pure soul, the story about her life has been repeatedly told for many years. She was badly suffered by her illness; she got little education; she came from a poor family, and could not afford to go to school, but her energy and her Danko heart kept burning forever, like a warm wind. She’s like a real teacher. Her personality and her real life are like a novel.

Anh still remembers very well that, 45 years ago, she was born in the joy of the family. Then, as soon as her father got her through the nurse\'s arms, he burst into tears. For the first time, he cried, crying for the life of his poor daughter. Many months later, he did not dare to look directly at the truth, her baby daughter. “I still remember clearly the day Lan was born. She was so small and poor. Her body is thin, her face is tiny, she weighs less than 2 kg, her body is always bent forward, especially her limbs are crooked, and as small as a stick”, said her father.

Looking at his daughter at that time, he felt guilty. He just wanted to die for his daughter’s life. He went to war, and the destructive chemical sprayed by the enemy absorbed into his body and passed on to his son. He was a wounded soldier; he once fought for a long time in the battlefields of Southern Laos - Quang Tri - Thua Thien.

With her weak and abnormal body, many people thought that \"this girl probably won\'t live a few days\". Her mother also had to quit her job to stay at home to take care of her. Due to poor health, Anh was taken to hospital every month. When she was 2 years old, Anh began to learn to walk. At the age of 3, her fingers began to gradually stretch. At the age of 6, Anh started schooling. She is especially keen on learning.

Therefore, Anh\'s academic results are always on top in the class. At 4^th grade, Anh’s handwriting was chosen to take part in a beautiful handwriting contest and at 6^th grade; she was chosen to take part in the talented students in literature contest. The person who accompanied her during those school years was her grandmother. \"Grandma is my feet. On sunny days, she helped me walk, on rainy days she carried me on her back. There are times when the road is slippery, the two of us fell down, but she still didn’t give up. Dirty clothes can be replaced, but schooling must not be canceled.\" - Anh recalls.

During her elementary school, Anh was always teased by her friends with nicknamed \"alien\" or \"monkey girl”. She said: \"At that time, I felt very sorry for myself, and sometimes thought about dropping out of school so that I wouldn\'t have to listen to those ugly words from my friends. But it seems that my passion for learning is too great to quit, so I still carried on\".

But her study only went smoothly until the end of 8^th grade, at the beginning of 9^th grade, her health suddenly declined. Anh could not continue her schooling, but long days in hospital instead. After a long time fighting the illness, Anh\'s health began to recover gradually. Knowing that she could not attend high school like her friends, Anh asked her parents to let her study English.

Seeing her determination, her parents accepted her proposal. Her parents sent her to Hanoi to stay in an uncle\'s house and invited a tutor to teach her English. Being tutored at home, Anh was very eager. She studied night and day with a passion that makes many people amazed. But this study only lasted a year, because her health once again turned \"bad\". She returned home but still self-studied English. She then took a test and got C certificate in English.

An inspiring person

When being asked what brought her to the teaching job, Anh smiled and replied: \"Back then, my family had a cafe I used to sit at my cafe to help my parents sell things. I always held an English book in my hand. One day, one of my neighbors came in the cafe and asked me to teach her child English. I was really happy and nervous at that time when thinking of teaching. That was the beginning of my 20-year teaching job”.

Then \"good news has wings\", the disabled girl named Le Thi Lan Anh, although not holding a pedagogical degree, and never once standing on the podium, was trusted by many parents and became an English teacher for many students of Xuan Mai town at that time.

\"At first, I taught for free, because my biggest desire at that time was simply to become a useful person. But after nearly a year, the number of students increased remarkably so the parents wanted me to charge a fee for their children’s long-term learning. For me, it’s so great that a seemingly useless person now can earn money to support myself\"- Anh recalled.

In her class, there are not only normal students but also students with disabilities. For disabled students, Anh not only charges them no fee but also spends a lot of time talking and encouraging them to rise up in life. Many of them were always pessimistic about their defects, but when they were inspired by Anh, they felt much more optimistic.

Ms. Nguyen Thuy Hang, 32 years old (Xuan Mai town) said: \"My daughter is also a disabled person. She always felt inferior about her unusual appearance. She always lost confidence when she meeting strangers which made us very sad. However, since I sent my daughter to study with Anh, she has become much more active and confident. Regardless of how much knowledge she gains, just seeing her positive attitude makes us feel very happy\".

Although she has never acquired a pedagogical certificate, the number of students keeps increasing. That is a worthy reward for the tireless efforts of this disabled woman. Every year on the occasion of Vietnam’s Teacher Day November 20^th, on her personal page, Anh has the opportunity to show off beautiful flower bouquets given by her students and their parents. Those happy moments are gained with sweat and tears.

She expressed that: \"Sometimes after 1 hour of teaching, my legs seem to collapse because I\'m too tired, but thinking of the students makes me try harder. Because for me, happiness is seeing their progress; the motivation that made me stand up was also the students. If I stop now, it will be too great a loss\".

Over the past 20 years, Anh has taught a lot of students, at both primary and secondary levels. Many of them have succeeded, becoming translators, interpreter, and English teachers. Perhaps, this is a priceless happiness for her given her misfortune, hardships and tireless effort.

Anh was proudly to receive the Kova Award for “Beautiful living” category

Ms. Bui Thi Minh Duc, Chairwoman of the Women\'s Union of Chuong My district, said: \"Looking at Anh’s strong will and spirit to live and work, we do not let ourselves desperate when things are not easy. Anh deserves a shining example, inspiring many disabled people, motivating them to rise up in life\".

With her own unceasing energy and contributions to the community, Anh was honored to be awarded the 17^th KOVA Award in 2019 in the \"Beautiful living\" category. Also in 2019, she was praised by Chairman of Chuong My District People\'s Committee and Chairman of Hanoi People\'s Committee and awarded with the Certificate of Merit for \"Good people, good deeds\".

Before parting, the little kind-hearted teacher said with us that until now, after many years of teaching, she understands more and more about the greatness and responsibility of this job. The legacy of war can destroy part of her body, can prevent her from standing and walking, but it can never burn out her earnest desire for teaching. She said, “when I watch TV, read newspapers, listen to the radio, I see that many people still know very little about English. They are busy or worried or afraid of learning. This becomes a major barrier on their way to knowledge. I have many years teaching English, so I sympathize with my students more. When they first came to me, they were like young birds without English background, thus making them lag behind in terms of foreign languages. In my opinion, besides the measures of the Ministry of Education and Training - the leading educational management agency in the country, teachers must also constantly improve their knowledge. Now in this 4.0 era, everything is modern, new and flat to every roof. I wish that one day in the near future, over half of our population will be able to read and write in English. I envision the future when they sit in front of a television, watch a movie and can understand the content like a native, without a translator. Every night, I dream of that bright prospect. You can say I\'m not realistic, but I will continue my journey to help my students conquer the knowledge.