Richmond Dinh tells how his mother escaped Vietnam as a teenager, spent four years separated from her family, then rebuilt her life in Australia. She learned English, started businesses, bought a home, and raised four sons.
Questions this video answers
23
19
Eight
"70, 80, 90 people" (on a small 20 [boat])
Four years
Chapters
My parents migrated to Australia after escaping the Vietnam War. My dad was only 23, my mum was only 19, and it was my grandfather who orchestrated the whole thing. And on the night when the boat arrived, they all had to leave immediately. But the problem was, because there were eight kids in the family, they all couldn't go together. And so my grandfather had to make the quick decision that he was going to take all the girls first, leave the boys behind, and hope that they would make their way to Australia later. And it all happened in the middle of the night. It all happened so quick that they had no time to take any of their belongings. They had no time to say goodbyes, and they certainly had no time to even cry. And when they got onto the boat, it wasn't even over yet. I mean, most boats that left Vietnam didn't even survive. And so freedom was still a long, long way away. And I remember Mum telling me that they would literally cram 70, 80, 90 people on this small 20 boat. No food, no water. And because they were crammed like sardines and they were all suffering from seasickness, the only place they could vomit was all over themselves. And after spending a couple of days at sea. I don't know if you want to call it Fortune or Grace or fate or destiny, but Mum's boat was one of the lucky ones to make it ashore. But it was a bittersweet feeling because half her family was still stuck in Vietnam, and contacting them would have been too dangerous. So for the next four years, she had no idea where they were. And once again, I don't know if you want to call it Grace or Fortune, but four years later, the rest of her family managed to find their way to Australia. They found out where Mum lived and they knocked on her front door. And now the family is reunited. Fast forward. Today, even though Mum's not here with us anymore. She found a way to learn English. She found a way to learn the culture. She found a way to build several businesses for herself. She found a way to buy her own home. And she also found a way to.
Raise four kids, us four boys, all on her own.
And although Mum's story is unique, it's.
Actually not that special, because millions of.
Other people have been through what she's been through.
And the reason why there are literally millions of other stories like hers is because the human core, the human spirit, that part inside of you that wants to survive, that wants to win, that wants to grow, that wants to expand, that has the will to be great. That part inside of you is so much more powerful than you can ever imagine. You see, your mind is built to keep you safe. Your mind is built to play a small game. And the more you let your mind and your fears dictate your life, the more you'll kill the spirit inside of you, and the more you will destroy that part of you that just wants to be great. And I can assure you, the more you can trust your spirit, the more you can trust your gut, the more you can trust your greatness or your brilliance, whatever you want to call it, the more you can trust that part of you that has the will to do whatever it takes. I can assure you, the more successful you will be.
