Not far from them, a small shoeshine boy seemed isolated as he stood huddled by himself. He looked like he wanted to fit in as his eyes and mouth were glued to the older children. The children seemed to ignore him, leaving him to just stand there and watch. Looking at his huddled figure, Linh felt her heart sink. She kept looking at him through the glass until the rain stopped and the children left.
In the following days, Linh did not know why she noticed the boy. Was it because he looked quite small compared to the shoe shiners who often passed by her shop? Or was it because his face was young, his eyes were bewildered, and he looked so pitiful. While the other kids often boldly went into the shop, even bothering customers with offers of cheap, guaranteed shoe shines, he just stood there hesitantly looking in from afar. One time, it was past noon, the kids had dispersed to eat, but he still stood there, his legs shaking slightly. Feeling sorry for him, Linh beckoned him over. His eyes were happy, but his legs were still hesitant as he slowly approached. Linh opened her mouth:
- Shine her shoes!
He sat down, laid out the small shoe polish box and the few tools. Looking at the pair of clean shoes Linh gave him, he was a little surprised but still focused on applying shoe polish and rubbing the shoe until it was shiny. When he finished, Linh handed him a hundred thousand dong note:
- I don't have change, you can take it!
It shook its head in confusion, pulling its hand back, not daring to accept. Linh said softly:
- Just take it, consider it an advance. Come shine my shoes every day.
She was still shy, hiding her hands behind her back. Linh said kindly:
- She is a clean person. She has to polish her shoes every day even if they are not dirty. She sees that you are still young and probably do not have many customers, so she wants you to come shine her shoes every day.
The boy hesitated:
- Then I will come shine your shoes every day. But this amount of money is a bit large, I dare not accept it.
Linh smiled:
- You advance, consider it as a retainer.
The boy's face brightened. Linh added:
- My friend gave me the box of cookies. I'm on a diet so can you eat this for me?
The boy's eyes lit up when he saw the box of cookies. But he kept looking at the box of cookies and then back at Linh, looking worried. Linh urged:
- Eat this for me! The cake is delicious but can only be eaten the same day. Many times I had to throw it away because I left it overnight.
The boy heard that and was excited, reaching out to take the box of cakes. He hesitated:
- Then you eat. It would be a waste if I threw it away!
Saying that, he quickly broke off a large piece of cake and put it in his mouth. He seemed very hungry. Linh poured him a glass of water and gently said:
- Eat slowly! I'll give it all to you. I'm afraid of getting fat.
The boy looked up at Linh. He was shy:
- You are not fat. You are beautiful!
Linh laughed out loud. The boy seemed less shy so he laughed too. Linh started a conversation:
- Why are you so young and not going to school but shining shoes?
The cake in the boy's mouth seemed to get stuck. He tried to swallow it. Seeing that he was silent, Linh did not ask any more questions. The boy lowered his head and finished the box of cakes. Linh pretended to be attentively looking at her phone to make the boy feel less embarrassed.
ILLUSTRATION: AI
In the following days, the boy stopped by the shoe shine shop every day for Linh. He carefully rubbed along each edge of the shoe, meticulously rubbing away the faint stains. Linh knew the boy valued this job. All the shoes Linh had at home, she brought to the shop for the boy to polish. Not only Linh's shoes, but also her husband's and children's shoes to give the boy something to do. She didn't know if the boy knew Linh was giving him work, but every time he saw the pile of shoes Linh brought, his eyes lit up. There were times when he was so busy working that he passed the whole meal. Linh felt sorry for him so she didn't dare bring too many, but instead divided them up so that the boy would always have something to do but wouldn't have to do too much. When she and her niece became closer, the boy whispered:
- Ms. Linh looks gentle and pretty like her mother.
Gentle spirit:
- Where is your mother now?
The boy shook his head, tears welling up, choking:
- I don't know!
Tears rolled down but there was no crying. The boy tried to press his lips tightly to prevent any crying from coming out. Knowing that the boy was emotional, Linh did not ask anything more. She just gently rubbed his back as a way to comfort him. The two of them sat quietly together until the guests came in. While busy entertaining the guests, when Linh looked back, she saw the boy sitting diligently shining shoes, his eyes slightly swollen. Looking at him, Linh felt choked up but she knew he would not answer what she wanted to know. It seemed that the boy had not really opened his heart. Linh told herself that she would wait until the boy told her everything. Through what she had pieced together, Linh knew that the boy had a beautiful and very kind mother. But why did the boy have to wander around shining shoes? Linh kept wanting an answer to that question.
In the following days, the image of the boy kept lingering in Linh's mind. She imagined him curled up somewhere under the porch or being bullied and abused by older children. She couldn't bring him home and it was inconvenient to leave him at the store. Thinking for a while, Linh suddenly remembered her cousin who worked as a security guard at a kindergarten. He took on the night shift when his children were all grown up and didn't need anyone to take care of them. The security room was quite large, sometimes still accommodating 3 to 5 children who stayed late when their parents couldn't come in time. Thinking back and forth, Linh called him. After listening to her story for a while, her brother agreed. Linh felt relieved of a worry. She looked at the boy who was intently rubbing his shoes and chose her words:
- Where do you usually sleep?
Kid:
- When I have money, I go to a dormitory. It's 30,000 VND per person. They hibernate, many people snore loudly but I feel safe. When I don't have money, I choose a secluded place with a roof, and when it gets late I go in there to sleep.
Linh felt her eyes sting, she whispered:
- I have a brother who works as a security guard at a kindergarten. His room is quite big and near the restroom. I called him. If you want, you can stay over there tonight. There's a TV for you two to watch.
The boy said cheerfully:
- You allow it? There's even a TV to watch. So I don't have to worry about a place to sleep anymore!
Linh smiled:
- Yes, during the day I go shine shoes somewhere and around noon I come shine shoes for her. At night I go back there to sleep with my uncle. I'll take you there later to show you the place. The school is nearby.
The boy's face brightened. He hesitated:
- Why are you so nice to me? The shoe shiners always wonder what you do to make her like you so much. She saves her shoes for you to shine every day.
Linh laughed out loud:
- What do you say?
Kid:
- I said I didn't know. I just thought you were pretty and gentle like your mother. Oh, my name is Dat, Nguyen Thanh Dat.
Linh excitedly:
- What is your mother's name?
Dat:
- My mother's name is Mai.
Linh hesitated. She really wanted to ask more but was afraid the boy would be shy. After a moment of silence, the boy fiddled with the hem of his shirt and then began to tell: My mother is very gentle. She is very white and pretty but a bit skinny so she only stays at home to cook, clean and go to the market. My father is very fat. He owns a carpentry workshop and often yells at workers. My father is always covered in sawdust. My parents don't talk to each other much but my mother loves me very much. Every night my mother teaches me to study. Usually when I finish studying, my father has also finished drinking. My mother will wash the dishes, clean the house and then go to bed. Sometimes my father gets angry and hits my mother very hard. At those times, I love my mother very much but I don't dare to stop him because he has a hot temper. My mother also often hugs me and cries. One time, after my father hit my mother, he screamed:
- You say I smell bad, you like that sissy right?
Mom just cried. Dad growled:
- If that guy hadn't left, would you have married me? I'm just an uneducated, rough guy who's always dirty and smells of wood oil. All these years you've lived with me, but you've always missed him. Just look at your face like you're going to a funeral and I'll understand. You despised me, so why did you marry me and give birth to Dat? Do you know how much pain I'm in? I love this family, I love you and Dat. But what can that love change? It still can't make you love me and forget that weakling. Do you know why I drink? I drink to forget the shame of being hated and despised by my wife. Then my father cried. My mother cried too. Every now and then.
Dat paused for a moment and then continued:
- Maybe because my father often beat me, one day my mother left. No one knew where she went. From then on, my father drank even more. Many days, when my father was drunk, he just looked at me and cried. I was so scared! I wanted to go find my mother but I didn't know where she was.
Linh felt a lump in her throat, she softened her voice:
- Aren't you afraid your dad will be sad if you leave like this?
Dat whined:
- If you stay, Dad will be even sadder. Grandma and aunts often scold Mom and say you are a burden. Because of you and Mom, Dad's life is miserable. They also say that if you weren't there, maybe Dad would calm down and find someone who truly loves him.
Linh could not help:
- You left because they said that?
Dat nodded vigorously:
- Yes, I love Dad. I don't want him to suffer. I don't want him to drink. If I leave, Dad can find another wife. That woman will love Dad and maybe Dad will be happy and drink less.
Linh felt her heart ache. She didn’t know if she was crying because of the story or because she felt sorry for Dat. She suddenly felt angry at his aunts. Did they know that their words had caused him to leave home?
Trying to hold back her emotions, Linh suggested:
- Why don't you think that leaving like that will make dad sadder? And when dad gets drunk, who will take care of him?
Dat choked:
- I don't know. When Mom was still at home, Dad didn't talk to me much. When Mom left, Dad talked even less. I just didn't want Dad to be like that for the rest of his life, so I went to find Mom.
Linh asked:
- Do you miss your dad now? Do you want to go home?
Dat:
- I miss my dad but I don't dare go home.
Linh sighed:
- There is no parent who does not love their child. I think your father loves you very much too. He just doesn't know how to show it. If you leave like this, he will be very sad. Maybe he is looking for you somewhere.
Dat hesitated:
- I want to go home but I'm scared!
Linh held Dat's hand:
- Let me take you home! If dad wants you to stay, you can stay. If he doesn't accept, you can come back here. We'll figure it out.
Hearing Linh say that, Dat's eyes lit up:
- Teacher, you will go home with me! With you going with me, I will be less scared!
Linh hugged the boy. He was so young. Just the same age as her first child. While holding him, Linh thought about the rough man who loved his wife, about the beautiful, fragile woman. They could be very different. They could not find a common voice in life. But perhaps they both loved their child in some way. And Linh suddenly wanted to try. She wanted Dat's father to get back what he had lost. She wanted Dat to have more opportunities to be with his father, to understand and love him more. She also wanted that gentle woman to come back one day, even though she didn't know when. Maybe, just bring Dat back and then think about it. Deep down, Linh always believed that the man was also looking for and waiting for his child to come back.
The fifth Living Well Writing Contest was held to encourage people to write about noble actions that have helped individuals or communities. This year, the contest focused on praising individuals or groups that have performed acts of kindness, bringing hope to those in difficult circumstances.
The highlight is the new environmental award category, honoring works that inspire and encourage action for a green, clean living environment. Through this, the Organizing Committee hopes to raise public awareness in protecting the planet for future generations.
The contest has diverse categories and prize structure, including:
Article categories: Journalism, reportage, notes or short stories, no more than 1,600 words for articles and 2,500 words for short stories.
Articles, reports, notes:
- 1 first prize: 30,000,000 VND
- 2 second prizes: 15,000,000 VND
- 3 third prizes: 10,000,000 VND
- 5 consolation prizes: 3,000,000 VND
Short story:
- 1 first prize: 30,000,000 VND
- 1 second prize: 20,000,000 VND
- 2 third prizes: 10,000,000 VND
- 4 consolation prizes: 5,000,000 VND
Photo category: Submit a photo series of at least 5 photos related to volunteer activities or environmental protection, along with the name of the photo series and a short description.
- 1 first prize: 10,000,000 VND
- 1 second prize: 5,000,000 VND
- 1 third prize: 3,000,000 VND
- 5 consolation prizes: 2,000,000 VND
Most Popular Prize: 5,000,000 VND
Prize for Excellent Essay on Environmental Topic: 5,000,000 VND
Honored Character Award: 30,000,000 VND
The deadline for submissions is October 16, 2025. The works will be evaluated through the preliminary and final rounds with the participation of a jury of famous names. The organizing committee will announce the list of winners on the "Beautiful Life" page. See detailed rules at thanhnien.vn .
Organizing Committee of the Beautiful Living Contest
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/danh-thuc-yeu-thuong-truyen-ngan-du-thi-cua-ton-que-185251003163848324.htm
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