Tran Thi Mai was the first wheelchair recipient I met when I came to Quang Xuong District, Thanh Hoa province. She is now 34 years old but at the age of 28 her life was transformed at the hands of a horrific traffic accident. After that fateful day she could not walk or work as she had so proficiently in her former life and she was incapable of helping to support the family unit. The entirety of this grave burden then fell on the shoulders of her younger sister.
Mai’s unjust twist of fate also left her unable to take care of her own children -a beautiful boy and girl. Her children have become the shining light for Mai, their resilience, adaptability and positivity have filled her with hope and optimism for the future and have helped Mai to accept her new situation with the grace that becomes her. Her children are always eager to lend a hand and help ease the pressure of everyday life.
Despite her difficulties, Mai still earns money to feed her children even though she must work long hours doing difficult work. She said that her children have a right to learn and live as their friends do and she will do all she can to provide this for the angels in her life.
I hold people like Mai in the utmost esteem and respect. Mai never lets her new situation get the better of her and is never pessimistic, no matter how hard her life gets sometimes.
For Mai her wheelchair has been a sublime gift, a gift the likes of which has never been received by her before. A gift which is a watershed moment. A gift that she wishes to thank her sponsors for, from the bottom of her heart.
Written by Quynh Nhu, Edited by Jodie-Lee Trembath
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