The martyr’s memories of the days he followed the magnanimous call of the nation were animatedly, truthfully and movingly represented by small red characters in the diary.


Unforgettable memories

The small flimsy diary, with its characters blurred by time, had stored martyr Vu Dinh Doan’s confidences accumulated through all his protracted operation in Southern Vietnam.

Vu Dinh Doan joined the army on May 10th, 1965 in Chi Linh, Hai Duong Province. Two months later, his unit was assigned to march to the Southern front. He used to take notes wherever he went, with the geographical names, major happenings and his own feelings recorded in his diary. Vu Ba Con recalled that, at each stop, Vu Dinh Doan made use of his free time to take notes. Writing a diary had become his habit and the diary was his best friend with whom he used to share his secrets. Though the secrets were just the nostalgia which suddenly came up when he was contemplating mountains and sky from the top of a mountain pass, of the joy when he met with an acquaintance by chance along the operation, and of the feelings from watching a torrential downpour while guarding. All these  were narrated warmly by soldier Vu Dinh Doan.

The nostalgia of soldier Vu Dinh Doan could be seen right in the first pages of the diary, reflecting his first days heading for the Southern front.

“Today, September 5th, according to the lunar calendar, I stood right at the top of a 1,500m high pass, and September 10th is the death anniversary of my paternal grandmother, I will be at the top of a 1,800m pass. In the evening, Bong, Sao, Con, Gia and I had rice balls with salt at the top of the pass.” Vu Dinh Doan’s scrawls clearly reflected his nostalgia and this sentiment appeared again as he set his foot on a 2,800m pass, sweating and exhausted after 8 hours of climbing. The nostalgia and homesickness increased when amidst the mountains and forests.

In fact, soldiers had to bury their nostalgia  in their hearts for fear that they might be disheartened in battle. Vu Ba Con confided, “Homesickness was very natural, but we all tried to keep it to ourselves so as to stay firm in combat.”

“What we thought had been recorded our diaries. Actually, we were all exhausted during the operation and could only think of families during short rests. Therefore, we all preferred writing diaries. Each soldier owned only 1 or 2  small note books and had to use them very economically.” 

Fervour of a magnanimous time

The diary not only kept the secret nostalgia of martyr Vu Dinh Doan, but also contained the fervour of a patriot.

“On January 9th, 1966 - It would take us another 15 days to reach Quang Ngai province. Canh was wounded on January 15th, 1966. On January 19th, 1966, having a ten-day break. Eating cold rice with shrimp paste at the edge of a forest in Quang Ngai. My hard but glorious life… On February 1st, 1966, the unit was determined to hold a ceremony before going to the battle on Tuesday. The 37-member unit had a volunteer team to destroy tanks… 10 army oaths were read proudly with the determination to destroy 8 aircraft and 5 tanks of the enemy. At 6pm on February 1st, 1966, the unit started for the battlefield”. Those notes actually sketched a magnanimous time of troops.

For troops, memories of their comrades were ever-fresh and the nicest ones. In his diary, martyr Vu Dinh Doan underlined his unexpected meeting with a friend. The joy from the friend’s visit resulted in a sleepless night.

“At 7pm on February 9th, 1966, someone called my name as I was taking a rest. I rushed out and, to my surprise, met Truc, the husband of Ms. Ty in Quang Ngai. Being soldiers, our talks focused on the operation and the hardship as well,” Vu Dinh Doan wrote.

As the battle on Chop Non hill was coming, Vu Dinh Doan had less time and fewer stories were written in the diary. In some pages, he briefed the preparation for battle, the making of artillery trenches and the observation over the enemies’ aircraft. The final page of the diary was written on February 30th, 1966 when US aircraft flew around Chop Non hill many times.

Vu Dinh Doan sacrificed on March 28th, 1966. At the last moment of his life, he bit the red ball-point pen and wrote down on a game card, which he always brought along, the date he lost his life, hoping someone could inform his children. In 1975, the card, which was kept by Vu Ba Con, as mentioned, was handed over to Vu Dinh Son, the third son of the martyr. In 2011 when Vu Dinh Son went to the old battlefield to find his father, local people told him that it was in fact his father who wrote his own death date on the game card.

Another special souvenir of martyr Vu Dinh Doan is the photo of Ms. Yen and Ms. Nhat. The back of the photo bears the note, “Dear Nhat and Yen, you two presented me this photo as a souvenir before I went to the battlefield on June 9th, 1966 in Quang Ngai. My sacrifice is for the national salvation and the liberation of the South. If I am alive, we would be reunited and work together after the country is reunified. How warm it is when the nation is reunified.” This sweet note once again shows the martyr’s boundless love for the country and his confidence in victory. It also features that he seemed to sense his sacrifice.

Notably, at that time, martyr Vu Dinh Doan believed that the country would be reunified. In fact, his belief came true 9 years after his sacrifice. 

Reported by Thu Trang and Vu Hung
Translated by Mai Huong

Theo qdnd.vn

Related:

Souvenirs awake (Part 1)

The martyr and a talking card (Part 2)

Easing the pain of the war (Part 4)