VietNamNet Bridge – During the war, many people in northern Vietnam left behind their loved ones and families to go to the southern front. At that time, letters were the only means of communicating with the people back home. The letters resembled diaries and living documentaries on the war. Doctor Nguyen Van Ich and his wife doctor Vu Thi Nhu Hien wrote hundreds of letters to each other between 1962 and 1975.

Doctor Nguyen Van Ich and his wife doctor Vu Thi Nhu Hien now live in a small apartment in the Nam Dong residential area of Dong Da District, Hanoi. For this elderly couple, war memories remain fresh. Turning over the pages of history in his life, Mr. Ich said that liberating the south and reunifying the country was a sacred task of the entire nation at that time. Mr. Ich left for the southern battlefield in 1962 leaving behind his mother, his wife, and three children: “I was young and it was my duty to go to the battlefield to wrest back national independence. My wife supported me. We encouraged each other to fulfill our duties and promised to see each other on reunification day”.

After taking a photo with his wife, Mr. Ich left for the south. On the back of the photo, Ms. Hien wrote: “May you fulfill your loyal duty. The kids and I will wait for you”. This short but emotional message encouraged Mr. Ich a lot. Ms Hien recalls that on the farewell night, neither of them could sleep. Ms. Hien recalls: “I was very worried and nervous when my husband left home. I had to struggle internally because in my neighborhood, many couples lived together. But I thought without people like my husband, how could our country be reunified?”

While doctor Nguyen Van Ich struggled day and night to save wounded soldiers and injured civilians, doctor Vu Thi Nhu Hien had to take care of their aging mother and their kids and worked with other people in the north to ensure supplies for the southern front. The only thing that kept them in touch was their letters. They wrote to each other between 2 and 4 letters a month. These letters were a great source of encouragement for both of them helping them to be more optimistic and confident in the revolution and national reunification. Mr. Ich recalls: “It was very harsh on the battlefield during 1969 and 1970. We lacked food, many people were injured but we managed to overcome these difficulties to fulfill our duty. The situation was much better in late 1971 and we strongly believed in national reunification”.

Ms Hien said that many letters went missing on the way to the front. The postmen had to cross the Truong Son range and defy bombs and shells to deliver the letters. Hien says she was very worried sometimes when she didn’t hear anything from her husband. 14 years of separation meant 5,000 days that she lived in anxiety. She could not hold back her tears while recalling the day Mr. Ich returned home: “When he returned home, he was an old soldier already. Peace had been restored. That day, we had a family reunion. We talked a lot. My children could see their father. We were all reunified. We were very happy”.

The war is over but war memories are preserved in letters and artifacts of the war time. Of the hundreds of letters they wrote in those years, only some 300 remained after liberation day. The letters are on display at the Vietnam Military History Museum. They help the younger generation better understand their predecessors and their sacrifices for national independence and freedom.

VOV5