On Vietnamese Families’ Day: talk about a mother brought up her children by working as a rubbish-collecting worker.

Ms. Anh is absorbed in collecting rubbish.

Every day from evening to midnight, she started collecting rubbish in streets in her dark blue uniform of Bien Hoa Urban Environment Company so that the streets will be green and clean the following day. She is Nguyen Thi Ngoc Anh (45 years old) living in Quang Vinh ward, Bien Hoa city. Her family has been recently awarded as one of typical cultural families In Bien Hoa city and Dong Nai province.

Ms. Anh took up collecting rubbish when she was 16 years old. Reminiscing her starting day, she said, “I liked a fish out of water when I started work. I used to be embarrassed because everyone seemed to looked at me with unfriendly eyes. However, I restored my confidence to go on with my work because this job is my living and it is an honest job. And now I am proud to work as a person who makes streets clean.”

At first, Ms. Anh collected rubbish for hundreds of households in Hoa Binh ward. After that, she called upon other households and a number of households have been rising to over 2000 so far. In addition to Hoa Binh ward, she also collects rubbish in area 6, Thong Nhat ward and a part of Buu Long ward. She confided to us that the street in section 6 of Thong Nhat ward used to be muddy and bumpy, not as good as it is now. Some workers of the company who collected rubbish in this area gave up this work because they could not stand difficulties. Once day, while she was passing by this area, she saw a huge rubbish pile. She did not hesitate to collect this rubbish pile the following day. The  head claimed, “If you can clean up this pile of rubbish, I will let people empty rubbish here. If not, they have to go farther to empty the rubbish”. Much difficult the work was, Ms. Anh was determined to finish it. Presently, she is “the manager” of rubbish in area 6 of Thong Nhat ward, Hoa Binh ward and part of Buu Long ward.

Ms. Anh explained, “I am allowed to take my mask off when there is a pause in work.

At first, she collected rubbish with a delivery tricycle provided by the company. Due to an increase in the number of households, the company assisted her sum of money. Thanks to this sum and her savings, she bought a small van to help her escape from pulling the delivery tricycle and make her collecting rubbish easier and more efficient. She not only collected rubbish by herself but she also closely coordinated her co-workers and some people in difficult situation to collect and empty rubbish so that the work was well finished on time before the next shift started. Thanks to the new-bought Dasu, the amount of rubbish Ms. Anh collects is on the increase. She informed us that the amount of rubbish she collects a day is equivalent to five van trunks. In comparison with the previous days when she had to pull the delivery tricycle with exhaustion, she had to work very hard to be able to collect only a small amount of rubbish that was equivalent to a maximum of 12 tricycle-enclosed spaces. Moreover, on her own initiative, she also sorts rubbish out to take the wasted material and sells them to afford the gasoline that her van uses.

Despite rain or shine, she wore a palm-leaf conical hat and a mask, doing her job unobtrusively. When the streets are cleaner and more beautiful, she feels pleased with her work and her tiredness seems to disappear into thin air.

She said from the heart, “all jobs require working with all efforts. My three children have grown up. My oldest daughter is married, my second son has just graduated from university and my third son is a student at mechanical technique secondary school. That my children are mature helps me overcome all hardship.”

In her family, Ms. Anh is both a mother and a father, taking care of her children. At the age of 45, she is now a grandmother of two grandchildren. Although her oldest daughter did not afford to finish her high school, she has a happy family perhaps thanks to the fact that her mother’s way of taking care of family and educating children has a good influence on her. As far as we know, her second son is a good student. She always encourages him to make efforts to study in order to be mature and have a brighter future than his mother.

Having worked as a rubbish-collecting worker for 30 years, she is able to enjoy her life now but she continues with her beloved work. However, the happiest thing for her is witnessing her children’s growing up. Her family has been an encouragement and a source of comfort to her for years. Presently, living with her children, she goes on with her unobtrusive job, “a manager” of rubbish …