VietNamNet Bridge – His family had been worshipping him for 16 years. One day, Mr. Tieu Viet Thao suddenly appeared in the joy of his family and neighbors in Thanh Thuy village, Binh Hai commune, Binh Son district, in the central province of Quang Ngai.

Thao and his wife.

16 years ago, because of poverty, Thao decided to leave home to Phu Quoc Island in Kien Giang Province to work on a fishing boat. "At that time, we were both 35 years old and had four children (from 1 to 8 years old). He told me that when he had a lot of money, he would return home. It has been 16 years from that day,” said Mrs. Le Thi Thom, Thao’s wife.

About three years later, in 1997, a big storm swept across the island of Phu Quoc. Thom was informed that her husband died in the storm. She built a fake tomb and set up an altar for Thao.

Sitting next to her son, Mrs. Duong Thi Bong, 82, touched her son’s face and head by her shriveled hands and said in tears. "I missed him so much. Now he has returned. No word could describe my happiness,” she said.

According to Thao, he decided to go to Phu Quoc to change his life. At that time, the village did not have a single phone so he could only convey messages to his wife through some villagers who did the same job with him. In the big storm in 1997, Thao did not die but his ship was damaged.

He joined a fishing boat to Cambodia and then to Thailand. In 2011, he was arrested by the Thai police and was jailed for three year for having no personal documents while selling fish at a Thai port.

Thao with his neighbors.

In late November 2013, the Thai authorities handed over Thao and ten other fishermen to the Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand. Thao was sent home to reunite with his family.

"During all these years, I only lived on fishing vessels. I thought that I would have been paid quite a lot of money after the boat landed in Thailand in 2011, and I would have returned home but I was arrested," Thao said.

Back home after many years, Thao was surprised to see the changes in his village. His old cottage is now a nice one. "I promised to my wife that I would return with a lot of money. Now I’m back with the bared hands, I feel guilty to my family, ashamed to my neighbors! Though it is late, I’m determined to do from the beginning to compensate somewhat for my wife and children after a long time of separation," Thao said.

P. Lan