A special and meaningful act
Mr. Tran Van Cao was born in 1935 in Hamlet 2, Dai Yen Commune, Chuong My District, Hanoi City. His house, located in a small alley, contains a “treasure trove of photos” (about 800 pieces) of President Ho Chi Minh and a “historical epic” of 1,456 six-eight verses that he composed over a decade. Along with that are many portrait paintings of President Ho Chi Minh and landmarks such as Mount Karl Marx, Lenin Stream, Nha Rong Wharf, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, President Ho Chi Minh’s Stilt House… Particularly notable are 21 photos of President Ho Chi Minh that are solemnly displayed, which he received as a reward when he earned the title of Emulation Soldier of the Water Resources sector in 1968.
Mr. Tran Van Cao has always been passionate about collecting photos of President Ho Chi Minh. Photo: Nguyen Trong Tai
The chance that inspired his passion for collecting materials about President Ho Chi Minh dates back to 1963, when he was an intern at the Intermediate School of Water Resources. He was fortunate enough to meet President Ho Chi Minh during a visit to Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel Complex, after which the President moved on to Thai Nguyen Town. Listening to the President talk and encourage young people to study hard, work well to produce, fight, build, and protect the country… the image of a simple and close leader left him with an unforgettable impression. Since that meeting, he has been determined to study and follow the President throughout his life. At just 28 years old, young Tran Van Cao cherished a meaningful and humane idea: to create a “museum of images of President Ho Chi Minh” to honor the memory of meeting the President.
To obtain photos of the President, Mr. Cao shared: “I would just ask for them. Anywhere I saw a photo of President Ho Chi Minh, even on posters, I would ask for it.” At that time, his family still faced difficulties, sometimes not having enough money to print a photo. The photos he collected were “not rare but precious,” because each one is a piece completing the story about the President.
At the end of 2019, Mr. Cao decided to open a President Ho Chi Minh Memorial Room on the third floor of his house, with an initial area of 20m². The Memorial Room received encouragement from the local people, and he planned to expand it further and actively collect more photos. By 2022, he expanded the Memorial Room to 50m², and the number of collected photos of the President reached 800. With this extensive and precious photo archive, he sought guidance from museums to “learn how to arrange and display photos appropriately.” He organized the photos in chronological and event order, making it easier for visitors to understand and grasp information about the President.
At 90 years old, his memory of “the milestone moments of the President’s life remains intact.” Among these are photos that make him “troubled, thoughtful, respectful, and deeply admiring,” as he saw how the President always loved and devoted special affection to the people of the South. Even in his final moments, the President longed to visit the southern people…
Photos of President Ho Chi Minh displayed at the Memorial Room. Photo: Nguyen Trong Tai
From the photos of the President, Mr. Cao personally wrote poetry to accompany and illustrate them in words. Over about 10 years, he composed 1,456 verses. He wrote poems at home, while visiting the fields, transplanting rice seedlings, plowing, digging the soil… Some days he could write 5–6 verses, some days 9–10, but there were many days when he could not write any.
Some of the verses he composed from images of President Ho Chi Minh setting off to find a way to save the nation include:
– “Tat Thanh was born in this land
Where his umbilical cord was buried, he departed
What do mountains and rivers wish for?
Wishing that son would soon return to save the people
Going far away yet the President came near
What he learned would save the people and help life…”
– “The President was a miraculous leader
Leaving to save the nation at a young age
He did not go to make money
His benevolent heart spread across lands far away
Learning from the ancestors’ wisdom
With humanity and virtue to save the people…”
A useful address for young generations to learn history
Mr. Cao’s President Ho Chi Minh Memorial Room not only attracts visitors from Dai Yen Commune and Chuong My District, but many groups from other provinces and cities also come to visit. Whenever students in Chuong My District come to learn about President Ho Chi Minh, he enthusiastically and passionately explains every photo to them: This is the ship heading to France that Nguyen Tat Thanh boarded to set out to find a way to save the nation; this is the photo of Comrade Nguyen Ai Quoc arriving in Russia in 1923… Through these photos and verses, the younger generations see the history of the nation and the great contributions of the beloved Leader, thereby fostering patriotism and the spirit to study and follow the ideology, morality, and lifestyle of Ho Chi Minh. The notebooks filled with the emotions of those who have visited the Memorial Room grow thicker over time, giving him additional motivation.
Within his family, Mr. Cao always teaches his children and grandchildren that by looking at photos of the President and then looking in the mirror, they should “take the President as a role model” to study, correct themselves, and live ethically and meaningfully for society. He hopes that his descendants will continue to preserve and develop the Memorial Room that he devoted his entire life to building.
He confided: “At this age, I do not have much time left, and I want to spread my small knowledge so that the younger generations know how our ancestors contributed and sacrificed. The stories about President Ho Chi Minh told by our predecessors must be heard by the next generations so they can understand the merits of the Party, President Ho Chi Minh, and the Vietnamese Revolution.” “A wish of more than 60 years has now been fulfilled, and nothing can bring more joy,” he happily said.
Originating from his act of honoring President Ho Chi Minh, Mr. Tran Van Cao has been awarded a Certificate of Merit from the Prime Minister for his outstanding achievements in studying and following Ho Chi Minh’s ideology, morality, and lifestyle; the title “Good Person, Good Deed” by Hanoi People’s Committee; a commemorative medal from the Central Propaganda Department; and many other Certificates of Merit.
Thao Nhi