Onkyo Braille Essay Contest 2006 -- International Section (Asia-Pacific Region) ■ Highly Commended "BRAILLE - THE CHANGE OF MY LIFE" Ms. Hoang Thi Bich Viet (Vietnam: Female, 25-year-old) |
My childhood was spent in a dim and immense darkness. Day after day I was hanging around in an isolated room without a word to anyone. Silently, I listened to the sound of pupils calling to one another on their way to school. I was their age and should have been joining them but instead I was suppressing my desires and holding back my tears in bitterness as I thought of the schoolchildren like a flock of birds spreading their wings in the bright morning sunlight. Oh! - My dream will never become reality. Then, to my surprise, one autumn day yellowed by daisies blossoming all around, the Association for the Blind warmly welcomed me and introduced me to so many funny and interesting characters - small dots that appeared here and there - I could not believe that I was touching words. Strangely, these characters suddenly turned over a new page in my life. Just by using my fingers, I could now read, write, calculate and put down all my thoughts on paper. These little sesame grains on a Braille page had the power to make my dreams come true. They paved my way to secondary school where I learned to express myself in essays. I became an excellent literature student. After twelve years of general study, I thirsted for university and again Braille was a handy tool as I struggled for knowledge day and night. But, one day, my parents unexpectedly decided to put an end to my studies so that I could work to earn a living. This drove me to despair! However, being determined to face up to the challenges to fulfil the dream and goal of my life, I packed up my things and moved to a pagoda 20 kilometres away from home. There I lived under the shadow of the Buddhist nuns and worked as a sweeper of the grounds. I used my spare time to pursue my university studies with the help of Braille. Everything was so unfamiliar to me - the frugal meals, Buddhist discipline, a gloomy and distant space isolated from mainstream society. Suddenly, I realised that living this way would not provide enough money for me to sit for my examination. And so I decided to say a grateful good-bye to the Buddhists and returned home. I raised poultry and went to the capital to take part in the contests - life was rough but exciting. Then the good news came - I passed the examination. But how was I to continue my five-year study at the university? I wrote letters in Braille and got a job in a business enterprise for people with disabilities in Hanoi. Still, the income was not enough to cover the expenses of my student life. Three more years to go and I am being thrifty on everything in order to pursue knowledge. It is obviously not a road with roses for a blind girl striving for a living in Hanoi. But I am kept alive by my belief in the Association and in Braille. With inspiration from Louis Braille, I am ready to overcome all challenges and obstacles of the present in order to fulfil my hopes for a bright future. |
|