Swimming like a fish

Monday, July 27, 2015

Dai has lost sight in one eye. Nghia has a disability with his hand. The two boys live with their grandparents while their parents work far away from home. They are both sixth-graders at a secondary school in Hoang Hoa, a coastal district in the northern province of Thanh Hoa.

The two boys always kept themselves isolated from their peer friends. They dodged their teacher’s encouragement to join a swimming class too, which is co-organised by World Vision’s Coastal Areas of Thanh Hoa Province Resilient to Natural Disasters (CATREND) grant project and their school. They were afraid of water and believed they, with their disabilities, couldn’t swim like other children. Also, the class was far from their houses, so their elderly grandparents couldn’t take them to the course.

Their grandparents were worried about them too.

“His parents are away for work. I’m too old to secure my grandson’s safety. If something bad happens, how I can explain it to them?” says Dai’s grandfather.

Nghia’s grandmother didn’t think her grandson could swim. “He was born with disability, how can he swim?”

Their teacher and local officials visited their families and persuaded them several times by showing them photos of the pool and explaining to them about the course. The pool is small with a water level as low as the boys’ chest and two trainers look after their students at all times during the two hour sessions. Finally, the families agreed to let the boys participate in the course.

In the class, special lessons were tailored for the two boys. Nghia learnt to move his legs correctly because he can’t move his arm strongly. Advanced breathing and floating skills were provided for Dai as his eyesight is poor and he fears water.  

"I can dive and keep my eye open underwater, like a fish. I’m so excited,” Dai says.

After ten sessions, the two boys now can swim half the length of their swimming pool. “I’m so happy that I finally know how to swim,” Nghia says.

Dai adds, “I was afraid of water and my teacher’s scolding, but I’m not afraid now. I can dive and keep my eye open underwater, like a fish. I’m so excited.”

During this summer, the CATREND project has offered six swimming courses to nearly 230 children at the two boys’ school. Many of them live in difficult home situations or have disabilities like Dai and Nghia.

The CATREND project aims to reduce impact of natural disaster under climate change’s effects for communities in Thanh Hoa province. The project lasts from 2011 till 2016 and benefits more than 73,000 people in Quang Xuong and Hoang Hoa districts. It’s funded by the Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).

Photo and Vietnamese text: Nguyen Thi Nam