Heartbroken single mother with illness

Ms. Vu Thi Lich has suffered from arthritis for 2 years.

In the rented room, talking about her life, the skinny woman weighing less than 40 kg could only cry. Mrs. Lich divorced her second husband 10 years ago because she could not bear the violence. She and her children returned to her hometown in Lai Cach town to earn a living. She could not remember how many years it had been since she divorced her first husband and did not know how her two children who followed their father to the South were doing.

Returning to her hometown with nothing, no land or house, Mrs. Lich and her son have rented a room of about 15 square meters for the past 8 years in Hoang Duong village. For the past year, she has been working irregularly because of the pain. The income is not worth much and she has to pay for medicine, so the landlord took pity on her and waived the rent.

In the small rented room, the furniture was mostly given by relatives and neighbors. On cold days, the pain penetrated every joint. Sometimes she wished she would die so she wouldn't have to endure the endless pain. But thinking of her child, she forced herself to endure.

Looking at Mrs. Lich's frail figure, all that was skin and bones, everyone felt sorry for her. Her illness could not be cured. With a meager income of 3 million VND/month, she only had enough for one medical examination. Therefore, the mother and son's meals were simple, consisting of white rice and vegetables. Knowing the family's difficult circumstances, her son, even though he was in 10th grade, took advantage of his day off to work part-time. A few months ago, if the teachers had not come to encourage him, he would have dropped out of school because he did not have money to pay the tuition.

In 2019, Ms. Lich spent more than 180 million VND on medical treatment, of which 80 million VND was borrowed. She does not know when she will be able to pay back that amount as her health is getting weaker and weaker, and she cannot work regularly. Many times while working, she had to ask someone to take her home because the pain was too much, and the more she tried, the weaker she became.

Mrs. Lich's family has 5 siblings but they are all married far away and are not well off so they cannot help much.

Many times, the monks of Hoang Duong pagoda offered to let her live in the pagoda so that they could take care of her and help her with some of her difficulties, but she refused because she thought that although she was weak, she could still work occasionally. Taking advantage of her healthy days, she went to work at a shoe manufacturing company near her boarding house. Knowing that she was weak, the management of the company arranged for her to apply glue and remove stitches.

Ms. Vu Thi Thuan, Vice President of Lai Cach Town Red Cross Society, said that Ms. Vu Thi Lich has been in difficult circumstances for many years. She hopes that kind-hearted organizations and individuals will help. Any help can be sent to Ms. Vu Thi Lich, Hoang Duong village, Lai Cach town, phone: 0328.010.558.

HAI HOA