For Tran Thi Ut, a 68-year-old from Lai Thieu Ward of Thuan An City in Binh Duong Province, approximately 30 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City, daily caretaking routines for her 31-year-old daughter, Nguyen Thi Nhu Tam, are just part of a lifetime of sacrifices that she, as a single parent, has made for her two children.
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| Tran Thi Ut (left) is always on standby to tend to her daughter after her dialysis sessions. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
Tam has to undergo renal dialysis – the process of cleaning toxins from the blood using a special machine because of poorly functioning kidneys – three times a week at Cho Ray Hospital in District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, as much-needed treatment for the kidney disease she has suffered for nearly 20 years.
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| Nguyen Thi Nhu Tam is undergoing renal dialysis at Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
Instead of a peaceful retirement, this silver-haired single mother has pushed herself forward doing all kinds of odd jobs with a single goal in mind: to keep her beloved daughter free of pain and as healthy as possible.
Together the duo have braved poverty and battled the debilitating illness, which has left Tam weighing less than 35 kilograms and looking older than her age.
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| Renal dialysis sessions and surgeries undergone for nearly 20 years have left Nguyen Thi Nhu Tam’s arm (right) riddled with scars. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
There are times when Tam’s illness deteriorated to a point that she fell into a coma.
Somehow the young woman managed to hold on, with her mother always by her side.
Three times a week, Tam and Ut take a bus from their home to the hospital for kidney dialysis.
While her daughter is receiving the treatment, Ut makes her modest income from selling lottery tickets and carrying patients or their caretaker relatives to bus stops or designated locations on her torn-down bicycle to pay for hospital bills.
“I’m paid VND10,000 [US$0.4] each time or sometimes double the sum by generous customers,” Ut said.
Money earned from both providing xe dap om (bicycle taxi) service and peddling lottery tickets is just enough for them to get by, the old woman added.
“I’m willing to do any errands to cover my children’s medical bills as long as I’m not violating the laws,” she said.
Ut shared she has been the sole breadwinner and caregiver to her children since the day her husband walked away following their daughter’s diagnosis of kidney disease.
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| Tran Thi Ut works as a xe dap om (bicycle taxi) driver for a supplemental income. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
The whole world seemed to be against her then, and until now she has not been out of the woods yet.
There were times when she was really down but those feelings quickly washed away as she saw her daughter’s smiles and realized how important her work was to helping her daughter survive and stay motivated.
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While her daughter is receiving dialysis, Tran Thi Ut (left) earns her meager income by peddling lottery tickets. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
Tam is overwhelmingly grateful for her mother’s sacrifice.
“Mom is the best” is how she describes her loving mother.
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| 68-year-old Tran Thi Ut shared she has been a long-time vegetarian for her own peace of mind. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
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| The mother’s and daughter’s shadows are cast on the ground in the afternoon sunshine. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
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| Despite being in her early 30s, Nguyen Thi Nhu Tam only feels at ease in her mother’s company. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
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| The mother and daughter ride a bus back to their home, located in Binh Duong Province, Vietnam after a long hard day. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
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| 68-year-old Tran Thi Ut (left) remains in high spirits no matter how harsh life is. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
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| Nguyen Thi Nhu Tam’s greatest wish is that her elderly mother stays healthy to side with her and get her ready for what life throws at her. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
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| With her emaciated body weakened by the debilitating kidney disease, Nguyen Thi Nhu Tam sometimes resorts to a wheelchair and her mother’s assistance to get around. Photo: Duyen Phan / Tuoi Tre |
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