When misfortune strikes a family, a mother will do everything she can to protect it. Yesterday, 23 such mothers were honored for their efforts and the sacrifices they made for their families.
Each of the 23 mothers, selected from around the nation, had heart-breaking stories behind their proud smiles as they were honored in Taipei City in the presence of their children.
Nguyen Thi My, originally from Vietnam, lives with her Taiwanese husband and two daughters, one in kindergarten, another a first grader, in Pingtung County.
PHOTO: CHEN TSE-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
At first, Nguyen and her family had a happy life. However, misfortune hit the family hard three years ago when Nguyen's husband, the main wage earner, suffered a stroke.
After his stroke, Nguyen's husband became partially paralyzed and lost the use of an eye.
Although Nguyen's husband wanted her to go back to Vietnam after his stroke so that his wife would not have to live a hard life, she refused and decided to stay with her family, Nguyen said.
To support her family, Nguyen began to work in a factory, but was soon fired because her boss complained she was not working fast enough, she said.
"After I was fired, I was very sad, so I drove my scooter to Tungkang (東港) on the sea coast," Nguyen said.
In Tungkang, Nguyen walked into a market where fish, fresh off the boats, was sold at wholesale price.
"I thought to myself, maybe I could sell fish, too," she said.
With exactly NT$480 in her pocket, Nguyen walked up to the wholesaler.
"I told him: `I would like to buy whatever fish I can buy with NT$480, because I'd like to sell fish,'" Nguyen said.
After returning home, Nguyen sold the fish she bought from the market for over NT$800.
"I was very happy and decided to sell fish every day," she said.
From that moment on, Nguyen would wake up at 2:30am every day to drive to Tungkang, a 30-minute drive away from her home in Wanluan Township (萬巒), to purchase fresh fish from wholesalers, she said.
"I start selling fish everyday at around 5am, I help my daughters with their schoolwork and I take care of my husband. I really don't have much time to sleep," she said.
In addition, Nguyen also studied Mandarin and Hoklo (also known as Taiwanese) on her own, she said.
"Life is hard, but I can't give up. I want to bring food to my family, I want my daughters to go to school and succeed in life," she said. "I don't care how hard I live, as long as my family is well, it's all worth it."
Among the "mothers" present at the ceremony, Ching Tien-chun (
Ching, 80, only got married after he retired from the military in 1978.
Misfortune struck as his wife became paralyzed with cerebral palsy in 1990.
His son, who is now 19, has also been troubled with cerebral palsy since the fourth grade, Ching said.
Although at an advanced age, Ching took care of his family, assuming the role of father and mother.
"My son isn't normal, but I wanted him to have a normal life, so I helped him," Ching said.
"Now, he's a college freshman majoring in English. I'm really proud of him," Ching said.
Like Nguyen, Ching felt his sacrifices were easy to make.
"As a parent, I have the responsibility to support my family. As long as they're well, I don't feel that life is hard at all," he said.
The event was hosted by the charity organization Taiwan Fund for Children and Family to celebrate Mother's Day this Sunday.
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