A boy who was a victim of a landmine blast brought the aspiration to change the lives of people in the same situation through the bamboo dragonfly that “knows” how to keep its balance, painted in many colours… That is Nguyen Duc Huynh (25 years old, living in Ward 3, Dong Ha City, Quang Tri).
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Huynh is the “boy without a face”, but his manner and gestures seem strong. Standing before me and others, Huynh is not shy and does not smile awkwardly. On the contrary, Huynh shows clear strength as he gradually turns his dream into reality.
That is a very great change, because Huynh's childhood was not like his friends'. An explosion after the war robbed Huynh of part of his childhood and replaced it with days haunted by his appearance, or lying on the operating table. The love of benefactors and advances in medicine gave Huynh back a face, but of course it is not as easy on the eye as it was at first.
Then Huynh went to school and studied at college level at the Hanoi University of Electricity. But after graduating, he could not find a job, largely because employers were wary when they saw his appearance.
When he was sad and bored, Huynh turned to the colourful bamboo dragonflies, gifts from a few friends, to cheer himself up. And an idea flashed in Huynh's mind, linked to those small, lifeless keepsakes.
“No one is born knowing how to do this or that, so I packed my bag and went north to learn from the masters. For more than a month, I knew nothing but bamboo dragonflies. Every stage, from choosing the bamboo, whittling it and assembling it to painting it, I gradually mastered, and the artisans praised me for having a craftsman's touch,” Huynh shared.
Huynh did not build his dream with bamboo dragonflies for himself alone, because his goal from the start was to share joy, aspiration and income with people in the same situation. Returning to Dong Ha City, where many people with disabilities badly need a job, Huynh quickly recruited five workers. “The older women are people with disabilities, and because they are older they are very well suited to making bamboo dragonflies, which needs great patience and care,” Huynh revealed.
And so the bamboo dragonfly workshop opened right in the small house of Huynh's parents in Dong Ha. Together they made beautiful keepsakes, and smiles returned to the lips of people whom fate had treated unfairly… “Not to mention money, this work has brought us joy, a desire to live and, above all, a feeling of being useful,” said Ms Cuc, one of the skilled workers at the workshop.
Finding outlets for the dragonflies is always what worries Huynh. And it seems he has been lucky, with many friends and benefactors always caring for him and accompanying him, even someone whose appearance is the opposite of his, such as Thuy Van, first runner-up of Miss Vietnam 2008… “Our products are mainly sold to souvenir shops and to foreign visitors, at an average price of about VND 30,000 each. I also use friends and many connections to send bamboo dragonflies to many places around the world. If I remember correctly, about 2,000 of them have flown away like that,” Huynh said, not hiding his pride.
The bamboo dragonflies are truly small, but perhaps they carry a very big message. At least, Huynh believes so!
Nguyen Phuc – Thanh Nien Online