Most of us take the little things in life for granted, and sometimes, we complain and don’t even realize how good we have it. Take the school drop-off lines for example. How many parents have you seen ranting on social media about how long it takes to drop their kids off at school in the morning? In reality, we should all be thankful that we have safe schools, reliable vehicles, and jobs to hurry off to after dropping off our kids.
In Vietnam, parents want their kids to get an education.
It’s important to them, and they are willing to do whatever it takes to get their kids back and forth to school each day. Sometimes, that means going to the extreme.
When floods washed out a footbridge that students and parents used to get to school, the parents could either keep their children home or get creative and find a way to get them across the water. They didn’t have access to boats, and the current of the flood would have pushed one down the river too quickly anyway. Instead, they came up with a way to get the kids across the river while also keeping them safe and dry.
The parents put their kids in large plastic bags.
They are about the size of a trash bag. The kids’ bags are then sealed or held closed, and one of the parents delivers the children across the river. The children have enough air in the bag to allow them to make the journey, and they stay dry. The parent who walks across the river has to be careful not to lose their balance or drop the children in the rushing waters.
It’s tough to watch but also inspiring. These parents want their children to have better lives than they have, and they know that means they need to have an education. If they have to haul them over rushing waters to make that happen, then so be it.
One of the teachers, Miss Minh, explained that this is just how they do things there.
She said:
“It’s normal. That’s the only way to cross the stream because no bridge can stand flood water. I’ve taught here since September last year. At first, I did not know how to ford the stream so I had to follow what local villagers did later.”
While this may look terrifying to most people, the parents and the children no longer worry about it.
They have been doing it for so long that is it no different than just walking their kids to school. The children also have complete trust in their parents and know that they would never do anything to harm them.
When the students are finished with their schooling, they walk back to the river and are hauled back across to the safety of their homes. The area floods often, so this is the method of transportation anytime the waters are high.
These people have found a way to ensure their children make it to school no matter what.
The next time you are in the drop-off line at school and are mad because it’s taking longer than you want and you aren’t going to have time to stop to get your morning coffee, think about the parents who are dragging kids through high waters in trash bags just to get to school.
It makes our morning coffee seem a little less important.
This gives us a new appreciation for the ability to drop our kids off at school in a car – at least we don’t have to send them through rushing floodwaters in a plastic bag. Sometimes, it takes a little perspective to realize that things aren’t as bad as they seem. What we consider an inconvenience, someone else might consider a luxury. We should be grateful for the things we have.
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Watch the footage below.
