Reunion

It's been many years since Le Ly and I first met, but she hasn’t changed much.  Her hair is now shorter, and she laughs more.  Her voice is still loud and clear.

We met for tea, and she talked about what her life had been like and her goals, about planning a trip to Laos, Cambodia, India and South Africa, and other places, to help more people.

This reminds me of Gabriela Mistral, a Chilean poet, Nobel Prize winner and author of children’s literature.  In the poem, “His Name is Today,” she wrote,

“We are guilty of many errors and many faults,

But our worst crime is abandoning the children,

Neglecting the fountain of life.

Many of the things we need can wait,

The child cannot wait.

Right now is the time his bones are being formed,

His blood is being made,

And his senses are being developed.

To him we cannot answer ‘tomorrow’

His name is Today.”

Inspiration, creation, and transformation

During a recent trip to Shanghai, I had a dream.  I dreamed of a child standing on the platform of a train station, crying and waving to me.  Waking from the dream, I momentarily forgot where I was.  It’s three o’clock in the morning.  Through the window I watched the Huangpu River flow by, serene & solemn.  Across the river was the world-famous Bund.  Lights shimmered from the passing ships.  Freighters left behind traces of passage in their wake.  About 60 years ago, China was war torn, struggling through 8 years of war against the Japanese invasion.  Countless innocent lives were lost and families wrecked.  In the European theater, how many lost their lives in the cruel and merciless genocide?

I turned my computer on to start writing Le Ly’s story.  I hope very much that people would learn, from her experience, how to restore humanitarianism, how to re-build hope for the human kind, how to stop the next generation from further robbing from our earth, how to eliminate human trafficking, child labor, drugs and war from our lives, and how to make the world a better place in the limited amount of time we have.

Le Ly’s story encourages us to learn to be more caring and compassionate toward others, and to inject more determination and enthusiasm in our endeavors in life.

Giving

I once asked Le Ly what made her feel happy and blessed, she immediately said that giving made her happier than receiving.  She added, “Give your best effort to help others.”  She then told me a story - - A very wealthy Vietnamese woman married a Singaporean.  This beautiful woman had more jewelry and gorgeous clothes than she could wear, but she was not happy.  She asked Le Ly how she could find happiness.  Le Ly told her, “Take off your ring and build a library.  Take off your bracelet and build a hospital.”

Real happiness is not measured by how much you own, but by how much you give.

I am very touched by Le Ly’s dedication and contribution to her homeland.  Yes, we feel sorry for the handicapped, and we cry with those who lost loved ones, but we must understand that it’s even more important to gather strength to give hope and energy to those who are hurting.

You can learn more about Le Ly Hayslip and her status of her work in Vietnam on the website below:

www.globalvillagefoundation.org