BTO – In today's world, many people see money as the measure of their worth and of the happiness they have. In other words, the more money you have, the happier you are, as in the saying “with money you can buy anything, even a fairy”. For me, my wife and my child, it is different: our family always feels happy when we can share with the less fortunate people around us. That is our family's joy and happiness.

Happy family

From early childhood, I suffered many misfortunes. We lived in poverty, short of food and clothing, so I always dreamed of one day having a full stomach before going to class. Although I lacked everything, I always studied hard and did very well. In the end, I completed my education and became a teacher. Although I teach math, I also have a gift for writing, so I often contributed articles to newspapers and radio stations. Thanks to my hard work, my family's life gradually became more comfortable. I began thinking about the unfortunate people around me and always wanted to share with them. Having once been poor myself, I deeply understand the hardships others are going through. I was so happy that my wife shared my view. So the two of us agreed that every month, when we received our salaries, we would set aside some money in a separate envelope for charity. At first we set aside 200,000 VND a month, and that amount gradually grew. Now my wife and I set aside 500,000 VND every month for charity. In any month when I receive payment for my writing, the amount exceeds 1 million VND. Even though my wife, because of a serious illness, had to go before the Medical Assessment Council and retire early on a small pension, she is still very happy to continue our charity work. I also encouraged our son to save part of his daily school allowance for charity. Although he sets aside only 1,000 or 2,000 VND a day, after a few months it adds up to a decent sum to help the poor. I have helped many unfortunate people and I have come to see them as my own family: Trường (a former student of mine), who is blind; Ms. Ngọc, a Buddhist follower at Trúc Lâm pagoda, who was injured in a traffic accident and now sells lottery tickets from a wheelchair; Mr. An, a teacher at Phước Vĩnh Tây School (Cần Giuộc district), who is on dialysis; Mr. Long in Hamlet 7A, Mỹ Yên commune, who has used a wheelchair since childhood… and many more people than I can list here. Every time I help them, I feel truly happy. The most moving moments are when my wife and I visit a family in hardship who need help. Just seeing the gratitude in their eyes makes me feel so happy. Those days are the most beautiful days of my week. What could make me happier than knowing that the money I share will give them good meals or buy medicine to help them overcome their illness?

So my whole family is of one heart and mind, because we always want to share the happiness we have with so many unfortunate people. As the late composer Trịnh Công Sơn once wrote in a song, “To live in this life, one needs a heart”. I hope that our family's heart can be a flame that warms the many lonely, cold lives struggling every day through the storms of life. I quietly wish that our society will have more and more benefactors who share their happiness with others. How beautiful life would be if everyone held to the thought in a poem by the poet Tố Hữu:

“What in this world could be more beautiful

Than people loving people, living to love one another”

NGUYỄN THANH DŨNG