Mid-Autumn Festival 2025: Lighting up beautiful dreams

Mid-Autumn Festival is not only a children's festival, but also an occasion for adults to look back and understand that educational innovation begins with lighting up the innocent dreams of children.

Mid-Autumn Festival is a festival of faith and the journey of sowing dreams. (Photo: Phuong Anh)

Every autumn, children everywhere are excited to carry lanterns, break cakes, and send along the full moon their innocent childhood wishes. Mid-Autumn Festival is not only a children's festival, but also an occasion for us adults to pause, look into the innocent eyes of children and see faith in tomorrow.

The colorful star lanterns, carp lanterns, and spinning lanterns not only light up the full moon night but also symbolize the dreams and aspirations of every child. In that innocent world , children dream of becoming teachers, doctors, engineers, or simply wish their parents to always be healthy. Under the moonlight, those small dreams are planted and, if nurtured, can become a source of lasting energy to support them on the path of learning, growing up and contributing.

Every child’s dream is a good seed. But the seed only germinates when it is sown on fertile soil, nourished with love, education and trust. Today’s society, with its rapid changes in technology and the market economy , requires us to preserve and nurture the inner world of children, so that they can remain innocent, honest and full of kindness.

The Education sector carries with it a special mission, not only teaching knowledge but also nurturing the soul. As General Secretary To Lam once instructed at the 80th Anniversary of the Education sector's tradition and the opening of the 2025-2026 school year: Innovate general education in a comprehensive direction. Not only imparting knowledge, but also nurturing personality - training the body - nurturing the soul, arousing the spirit of citizenship, sense of discipline and social responsibility; forming a generation of people who are "both talented, compassionate and resilient".

That is not only the goal of education, but also the aspiration of the whole nation. And that journey, perhaps begins with something as simple as lighting up a child's childhood dream.

Mid-Autumn Festival is not only a joy for children, but also an occasion for adults to reflect on themselves. The full moon is a symbol of reunion, a reminder of our responsibility to create an environment for children to grow up fully in knowledge, personality and dreams.

There are rural areas where children have not yet experienced a real Mid-Autumn Festival; schools in remote areas still lack electricity. But it is also there that one can easily encounter touching moments such as teachers making moon cakes, making lanterns, and sharing small joys with their students. The light of candles in star lanterns in remote mountainous or island areas is sometimes not as bright as in the city but is strangely warm.

This year's Mid-Autumn Festival is very different, as the Central and Northern provinces have just experienced the loss caused by storm No. 10 and are being affected by storm No. 11. Many houses were swept away, many children did not go to school, and no longer have books. Many children will not be able to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. Today, students in Hanoi are off school, switching to online learning...

Someone said, "This year's Mid-Autumn Festival, the moon may be obscured but the light of love has never faded." Indeed, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, many children will not have moon cakes, star lanterns, or be able to carry lanterns and look at the moon, but surely the faith and dreams of children will still exist.

A strong reform of the education sector can start from the igniting of children's dreams. Because all real reform must start from people. A reformed education does not only lie in the program, textbooks or teaching methods, but also in the education that knows how to listen, inspire and nurture students' dreams. When each child learns to understand themselves, dares to dream and is encouraged to realize that dream, then education can truly reform from the root.

Children can learn faster and understand more deeply when they learn in joy, in a sense of respect and understanding. A lesson can start with a small story about a Mid-Autumn lantern, or a story about children in a flood-hit area who lost their homes and books, but carry a message about friendship, sharing and responsibility. That is when education knows how to touch the heart, not just impart knowledge.

Teacher and students making moon cakes. (Photo: Nguyen Trang)

Looking at today’s generation of students, we can easily see that they are intelligent, confident, and dynamic. Every teacher, every parent, and every educational policy can contribute to kindling their dreams. A timely word of encouragement, an inspirational lesson, or a curriculum that helps students express their abilities can all become the moonlight that lights the way for them.

Therefore, Mid-Autumn Festival is not only a Children's Festival, but also a Festival of faith, of the journey of sowing dreams. From the innocent dreams under the moonlight of Mid-Autumn Festival today, there will be engineers, doctors, teachers sowing letters in remote areas... Because every great dream starts from small aspirations.

It is the responsibility of the education sector and of the whole society to not let those dreams fade away. That is why the advice of General Secretary To Lam touched the hearts of many people: "We must build a generation of people who are both talented, kind and resilient."

Those three qualities – intelligence, compassion and will – illuminate the journey of educational innovation. Being talented to integrate and develop, being compassionate to know how to share and preserve national identity, being resilient to stand firm against the changes of the times. And all of it starts from a small, simple dream from the full moon night of each child.

In his 2025 Mid-Autumn Festival greetings to Vietnamese children, President Luong Cuong wrote: "The Mid-Autumn Festival has long been an indispensable beauty in the cultural life of Vietnamese people. This is an occasion for children to have fun, reunite, and gather with family and friends. However, I know that this year, many localities in our country are struggling to cope with storms, floods, and prolonged heavy rains, causing great damage to people and property, severely affecting the lives, activities and studies of children. I would like to share and send my deepest condolences to the children and families affected by natural disasters.

Uncle believes that with the care and attention of the Party and State and the spirit of solidarity, love and support of the whole nation, you and your families will overcome difficulties, soon stabilize your lives, continue to study, play and nurture your dreams."

Perhaps for each person, the moonlight is no longer a distant thing but has become a close reminder: Let's listen to children's dreams, and help them make those dreams come true. So that every year, when the moon is full, we not only see joy, but also see the future of the country shining in the smiles of the children. As President Luong Cuong emphasized: "I hope that you are not lucky, the children in the flood areas will always try, not back down in the face of difficulties; you should always keep your innocent, pure smiles, light up beautiful dreams, so that after the storm, life will be filled with light and joy again!".

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/tet-trung-thu-2025-thap-len-nhung-uoc-mo-tuoi-dep-330036.html