Nhi: free to be brave
In a small village near the coast, Nhi lived her childhood fearing that her family would run out of food. When she met Blue Dragon, it gave her the courage to reach out and follow her dreams.
Scribbles
It was a cheap notebook with lined pages. The cover was scuffed and the corners were bent. But inside, over the years, it came to be filled with the dreams of a young girl determined to lift her grandparents out of poverty.
Nhi lost her father when she was very young. Struggling to take care of three children alone, Nhi’s mother put her and her siblings in the care of their grandparents. Nhi describes her grandparents as tough – hardened by a life of hard labour – but kind and loving.
Her grandfather worked the fields from sunrise. Her grandmother stayed home to look after Nhi and her siblings – and grew vegetables. In the evening, she would cook these vegetables for the family dinner, and Nhi would follow her around, notebook in hand, asking questions about each step, each ingredient and each cooking technique.
As time went by, the notebook grew tatty and timeworn, swollen with recipe upon recipe that Nhi keeps close to her heart all these years later.
In their home by the sea, Nhi wrote down all of her grandmother’s recipes.
Torn
Despite the joy of watching her grandmother prepare the evening meals, Nhi spent much of her childhood trapped by poverty. Even from a young age, she could sense how poor they were – how much of a struggle it was for her grandparents to provide food and pay school fees – and she was desperate to help.
The leader of her village recognised her struggles, but encouraged her to stay in school. She was a bright student, and he understood that finishing her education was the best chance she had to lift her family out of poverty.
Nhi was torn. Though she understood the logic, she saw her grandparents suffer every day, and the dilemma caused her unbearable anxiety. Finally, she made the decision to drop out and get a job.
Nhi (far left) taking part in a school activity.
Nhi (centre) making a presentation at school.
Safe to take risks
When the village leader found out about Nhi’s decision, he reached out to Blue Dragon. With our support, her life changed completely.
“Blue Dragon made me feel confident to take risks and step out of my comfort zone.”
At age 11, Nhi joined a three-day leadership camp with Blue Dragon, where she met other children from a similar background. Making so many new friends who shared and understood her struggles, she remembers the trip as the first time she was really able to open up and express herself.
But it was another Blue Dragon event that would set Nhi on the path to her current life. At a mid-autumn festival, Nhi listened in awe as the host shared the story of a resort they visited for the day. The history, the food and the joyful atmosphere stirred in her the same excitement she used to feel as a young child following her grandmother around the kitchen, listening to the stories of each ingredient of the dishes she worked so hard to make for the family.
Suddenly, Nhi knew what she wanted to do with her life. She would keep studying cooking, and take her passion into the kitchens of resorts just like the one from that festival.
Nhi washing dishes.
Nhi washing glasses.
Fiercely competitive
When Nhi told us about her dream, we introduced her to a culinary arts vocational training course with our friend Streets International. The course is fiercely competitive, with only a few students accepted from hundreds of applicants each year. It would take all of Nhi’s determination if she were to succeed.
Nhi studied every night, staying up late after school to watch videos and read online textbooks – whatever she could find that might give her the slightest edge in the application process. Finally, all her hard work paid off.
“I felt so proud when I heard I was accepted.”
Nhi packed her bags, shared a tearful goodbye with her grandparents, and moved to Hoi An, a popular coastal town in central Vietnam, to begin the course. It was the first time she’d ever been away from home for so long, and she had lots of sleepless nights worrying if she’d really made the right choice.
As time went by, all those worries faded away. Nhi soaked up all the knowledge she cooked, joined every activity, and made good friends with her roommates; playing together, studying together, and of course, cooking recipes from her trusty notebook.
“We became like a family. I shared lots of recipes from home, and my new friends shared recipes and cuisines with me that I’d never heard of before.”
After just over a year, Nhi graduated with a mix of emotions. Elated to have passed, sad to say farewell to her new friends, and relieved to go home and spend some time with her beloved grandparents.
Just two weeks later, she was off on another adventure – this time to Phu Quoc, a small island off the south coast of Vietnam.
Nhi (right) studying with her friends.
Phu Quoc
“As soon as I finished the course, I started researching jobs at resorts around the country, and soon found an assistant chef role in Phu Quoc. I cried a lot when I realised I’d be leaving my grandparents again.”
While the role has only just begun, Nhi has already learned so much, making friends from different countries and getting stuck into new recipes.
“I want to keep being brave and have the confidence to step out of my comfort zone and to make new friends and to keep sharing my story.”
For the future, Nhi wants to keep studying in her free time while learning all she can at work, meeting experts and growing as a chef and a person. And of course, she’s excited to pay back the people who spent every day raising her, caring for her and teaching her the first recipes she ever fell in love with all those years ago.
“I want to cook all my new recipes for my grandparents and give them the chance to experience everything I’ve learnt.”
Nhi at her new job in Phu Quoc.
