That is the case of Dao Thi Thanh Tuyen, a pupil in class 6/2 at Dang Tat Secondary School, Quang Thanh commune (Quang Dien district, Thua Thien – Hue province).
Dao Thi Thanh Tuyen
Tuyen has cerebral palsy and paralysis on the right side of her body, so walking and speaking are very difficult for her. When she was small, seeing her friends happily going to school, Tuyen cried and begged her parents to take her to school. Seeing their daughter ill and often in pain, Tuyen’s parents could not help worrying, but seeing how much she wanted it, they could not refuse. So they took turns carrying her to a nearby kindergarten to ask for a place.
Because of her illness, when her peers were already in grades three and four, Tuyen was only just beginning to recognise the simplest things and to learn to hold a pen with her left hand. After five years of kindergarten, she moved up to grade one, but she read and spoke very slowly and pronounced many words unclearly. On top of that, Tuyen often had to stay in hospital because of epileptic seizures, so her results were not high. However, because she practised reading and writing very diligently, Tuyen began to make clear progress.
Difficulties and hardships grew even greater when Tuyen moved up to secondary school. Her home was far from school, and her parents could no longer take her there as they had “managed” before. Her father, Quoc, a carpenter, had to stop taking on contracts and only take piecework at home so he would have more time to look after her properly. Notably, on rainy, cold days, Quang Thanh commune, a low-lying area, is often flooded in the rainy season. Many days, father and daughter arrived at school sweating as if they had been bathed. When the school was flooded and classes were cancelled, father and daughter had to wade home together in the wind and rain. Many times, when work kept him from picking her up, his heart burned with worry.
Hard as it was, they did not lose heart. Quoc confided: “Seeing my daughter work hard and make progress, I am very happy and do not mind any hardship.”
Tuyen cannot wear shoes and has to walk with limping, lopsided steps, as if about to fall. And after only a few dozen steps, Tuyen breaks out in sweat and has to rest before she can go on. But except on days when she is ill, she hardly ever misses a lesson. Every time she changes classrooms for different subjects, Tuyen has to ask her friends to help her walk so she arrives on time. The hardest thing is speaking. Each time she speaks, her face turns red, her mouth twists and her neck strains for a long time before she can get the words out, which moves anyone who sees it.
Dao Thi Thanh Tuyen concentrates on her notebook
Tuyen confided: “Actually, when I first started grade six, I was very shy because I speak very slowly and unclearly, and I was afraid my friends would laugh. After seeing everyone care for me and help me, I became confident and keen to speak up or present my ideas in front of the class.” The unfortunate schoolgirl said she is very afraid of falling ill and having to stop school halfway; she would regret it so much.
Quoc said he and his wife have taken Tuyen for treatment in many places, but without success. At present, Tuyen has to take a daily dose of phenobarbital (epilepsy medicine), but she still sometimes has seizures and has to be admitted to hospital. According to specialist doctors, Tuyen has congenital cerebral palsy and osteoporosis and can no longer be treated or rehabilitated.
Despite being tormented by illness, Tuyen has been an excellent pupil for five years in a row. She dreams of continuing to go to school to become a teacher. But Tuyen’s family is poor, and after many years travelling everywhere to treat her, they are now even more hard up and in debt. No one knows how far Tuyen’s parents will be able to support their three children, including Tuyen, through school.
THU HA
(Teacher at Dang Tat Secondary School, Thua Thien – Hue)
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