To ease the pains

With all his grief, after lighting incense sticks for the deceased, Lieutenant Colonel Vu Manh Ha, deputy political officer of the Military Command of Thu Dau Mot city, said: “We gave the ashes of the dead - people who died of Covid-19, back to their families. The soldiers will try to be as careful and dignified as possible in order to ease the pains of the loss of the victims' families.

The soldiers carry out formalities and rituals to show the tradition of "filial piety devotion", bringing the ashes of those who died of Covid-19 to their families.

The heart-breaking call “Mom!”

In the morning of the first day of October, the car carrying the ashes of those who passed away due to Covid-19 from Ho Chi Minh city to Binh Duong in the heavy rain seemed to vent the sadness caused by the pandemic. Near noon, the sun suddenly dawned gently as if to "clear the way" for the urns to return to their families. After receiving the urns distributed to each locality, the car quietly left the provincial Military Command and went through long roads and stopped on a small alley of Le Hong Phong Street at Quarter 8 of Phu Tho Ward in Thu Dau Mot city.

The car stopped in front of a grade 4 house. From inside the car, Lieutenant Colonel Vu Manh Ha, Deputy Political Officer of the Military Command of Thu Dau city and the militia prepared an umbrella to cover the urn of ashes. To keep the urn from being sunburned, one had prepared a bowl of incense, other had prepared flowers and fruits to start the ceremony. After preparing, Lieutenant Colonel Vu Manh Ha said out loud: "On your stand! Everyone is two steps ahead!” The caravan slowly moved step by step to carefully bringing the ashes of a woman who died of Covid-19 into the house. From inside the house, family members began to sob out: "Mom!" - the crying seemed to tear the hearts of all who were present there. No matter how tough it was to resist the fact that the soldiers bring the remains of the deceased during the pandemic to their relatives, even more unable to bear it when the sobs of loved ones on "meeting" their flesh and blood only with the remaining of the ashes. It was unbelievable that the pandemic had brought such extreme sadness.

After many hours of waiting, receiving the box of his mother's ashes from the army soldiers, Mr. Vo Van Phuc's eyes turned red. Trying to hold back, the tears still dripped down the mask. Phuc said: “When my mother became seriously ill and had to be transferred to a higher level in the city, the family was worried about what would happen. Now that the soldiers brought back the ashes, the worry was dispelled. I just hope the pain will go away.”

“Each jar of ashes is a spirit, a scene of life, and an identity. The work of bringing the ashes of people who died of Covid-19 is not simply a solemn traditional ceremony, but also requires a sincere heart and sharing to partly comfort and ease the pain of others. We also tried to prepare enough to worship and ask permission of the deceased to bring them back to their ancestors and complete the funeral rites of the Vietnamese people, embodying the tradition of our nation.”

With tears still in his eyes, Phuc said his mother was unfortunately contracted Covid-19 because of the infection of people staying nearby. The disease became severe, so she had to be transferred to a higher level in Ho Chi Minh city. However, she did not survive and died at the hospital. After her death, she was cremated at Binh Hung Hoa Cremation Center in Ho Chi Minh city. “Nearly 10 days after my mother died, my family was able to pick her up. The family was deeply moved because my mother's ashes was brought to her home by the military forces. The family sincerely thanked the army for creating the best conditions to bring their deceased kin back.”

As the person who directly brought the ashes back to the family, Lieutenant Colonel Vu Manh Ha said: “Each jar of ashes is a spirit, a scene of life, and an identity. The work of bringing the ashes of people who died of Covid-19 is not simply a solemn traditional ceremony, but also requires a sincere heart and sharing to partly comfort and ease the pain of others. We also tried to prepare enough to worship and ask permission of the deceased to bring them back to their ancestors and complete the funeral rites of the Vietnamese people, embodying the tradition of our nation.”

Quietly without a word, each soldier lined up neatly to light a candle for the deceased. The image of soldiers bowing to see off the unfortunate souls still makes us choked up. That act of thoughtfulness is a source of comfort and encouragement, contributing to alleviate the pain of unfortunate families during this epidemic and helping the deceased to rest in peace. When handing over the ashes to the family and sharing the pain of losing a loved one, the soldiers rushed to the car to continue their journey to bring other urns to "reunite" with their families.

The entire sentiment

This time, the car stopped in front of the gate of Hoi Khanh Pagoda at Phu Cuong Ward in Thu Dau Mot city to bring the ashes of the deceased due to Covid-19 to the temple according to the family's wishes. From the temple yard, Mr. K.'s daughter (who died due to Covid-19) rushed out and asked the soldiers: "Are the ashes of my father, Mr. H.V.K. No?". When she received a nod from the opposite person, she burst out and fell to the ground, sobbing and calling: "Dad! Why did you only come back to us now?” Reassuring her to calm down, the soldiers continued to perform rituals to bring Mr. K.'s ashes to the temple.

Could not be any stronger, Mr. Huynh Tan Du of Chanh Nghia ward in Thu Dau Mot city, the son of Mr. K., also burst into tears as he hugged his father's ashes in his lap. He asked for permission to hold his father's ashes and move into the temple to walk with the deceased on the last steps. The tears soaked through the mask made everyone heartbroken. Ms. Nhan Mai, Mr. K.'s daughter, said: "Because of an underlying disease, when I contracted Covid-19, my father's illness became severe and had to be transferred to a higher level. Five days ago, when I heard the news of my father's death, my family was in pain and didn't know what to do. Welcoming my father back today, our family was very emotional for the care and attention of the authorities at all levels, the family's concerns are somewhat reduced."

Lieutenant Colonel Vu Manh Ha, said that after receiving the ashes from the provincial Military Command, the Military Command of Thu Dau Mot city verified with family and local authorities; at the same time, they grasp the thoughts and aspirations of the family to carry out the handover. Lieutenant Colonel Vu Manh Ha also told about many tragic deaths from Covid-19 that he couldn't help but feel sad. “There were cases where the sister's ashes have to be returned to her brother who is staying in Phu Tan (Thu Dau Mot city); or there was a case whe the husband died, the wife was sick, the children were abroad, so they have to send them to the temple. Covid-19 epidemic caused people to die alone when there were no relatives around,” lamented Lieutenant Colonel Vu Manh Ha.

Witnessing these special trips, Mr. Nguyen Van H. from Phu Tho ward said in tears: “Seeing the dead neighbor being brought home, I was choked with emotion. The epidemic has divided many people. Seeing the scene, we are even more determined to win the epidemic. Hopefully the epidemic will be extinguished soon.” Of course, the scene is something no one wants, but from that, it can be seen that the love among people is deepened. There, we also see more clearly the responsibilities of the authorities and the army towards each citizen, to help them overcome difficulties in life, ease the pain caused by the epidemic, and make them feel better with more compatriotism.

Reported by Huynh Thuy – Translated by Vi Bao