La Thi Hong and her daughter La Thi Hong Hanh talk via live video at the Dantri/Dtinews office in Hanoi on November 5.
Le Thi Hong and family members gathered at the Dantri/Dtinews office in Hanoi on November 5 to speak with her daughter, La Thi Hong Hanh, now named Lea in France, via live video.
The mother repeatedly wiped away tears. When she was first able to speak, she choked up, saying, “I am sorry, my child, I am sorry a thousand times.” Her words carried more than 30 years of longing.
From France, hearing her biological mother’s voice for the first time, Lea gently comforted her: “It is okay, I am doing very well now.”
Hong was joined by 15 relatives and neighbours, many of whom became emotional while watching the exchange on screen with the help of an interpreter.
Hong said that after DNA testing confirmed their biological connection, she was overcome with happiness and waited anxiously for the chance to meet her daughter.
More than 30 years ago, when Hong was pregnant, her boyfriend abandoned her. Under social pressure and with little money, she placed her newborn daughter in the Soc Son Orphanage Centre and agreed to adoption.
Two months later, unable to bear the pain, she returned hoping to bring her baby home. But the child had already been adopted by a French family and taken overseas.
“My world collapsed. I was only 20 back then. Society was harsh. If it were today, maybe I would have been brave enough to keep her,” she recalled.
Hong later married and had another daughter, yet the image of her first child never faded. She told her husband everything; he supported her, saying that if they could find her daughter, they would bring her home. But there were no clues.
Life grew more difficult. Her husband suffered a stroke, and she worked as a sanitation worker in Hanoi with a modest income. Still, she never stopped thinking about her daughter. She attempted various ways to reconnect but never received a reply.
Only recently, with support from Dantri/Dtinews, she finally reached her daughter.
“Dantri/Dtinews brought me this miracle. After more than 30 years, perhaps now I can sleep peacefully,” Hong said.
Hong wishes for her daughter’s happiness and hopes someday to hold her, even just once. She also expressed deep gratitude to Lea’s adoptive parents, who raised her with love.
“Even if I died after seeing you, I would be at peace. I hope you can forgive me. I wish you happiness and peace. I truly want to hold you once,” she said through tears.
Lea said she was delighted and moved to meet her mother and relatives after 31 years.
“I was surprised to see so many people at the reunion. I am truly happy to meet my mother after all these years,” she said.
Lea works as a graphic designer in France. She has always known she was adopted, as her adoptive parents told her from the beginning and treated her with deep affection. They live about 2 km from her home and remain close.
Before receiving the first message saying someone was searching for her, she was shocked and confused.
“I did not know who it was. I only learned that someone in Vietnam wanted to reconnect. After so many years, I never imagined this day would come,” she said.
Lea previously had no plans to find her biological family, thinking the chance was slim and not wanting to disrupt her life.
Meeting her mother and relatives in Vietnam stirred strong emotions. She hopes to return to Vietnam soon and is saving money for the trip.
“I want to return to my homeland, to see my mother and family in person,” she said.
Pham Phuc Hung, Managing Editor of Dantri/Dtinews (right) presents flowers to La Thi Hong and Dr. Pham Dinh Minh from the Gentis Testing Centre at the meeting.
Pham Phuc Hung, Managing Editor of Dantri/Dtinews, said the reunion between Hong and Lea was a beautiful ending to a mother’s decades-long longing.
