Airing at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday (January 3) on VTV1, the episode of Station of Love with the theme “Breaking Through Limits” left a profound emotional impact as it portrayed the life journey of Nguyen Phuong Anh (38, Lao Cai), a woman who has endured a series of devastating setbacks with extraordinary inner strength and enduring maternal love.
Having once lived a simple and stable life as a pharmacist with a loving family and two young children, Phuong Anh could never have imagined her life would take such a dramatic turn. In 2018, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer and had to undergo two major surgeries that resulted in the removal of her uterus. Before she could fully recover, another emotional shock struck when her mother, Nguyen Thi Duyen, was seriously injured in an accident, losing one arm and one leg and spending months fighting for her life at Viet Duc Hospital.
For four months , Phuong Anh battled her own illness while caring for her mother in hospital corridors, facing severe financial hardship. Just when it seemed she had reached her absolute limit of endurance, tragedy struck again in 2022. An accident at work led to spinal cord inflammation, leaving her completely paralyzed in both legs and confined to a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
Her mother, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Duyen greatest support. Despite her own severe disabilities, she maintained an optimistic spirit, becoming Phuong Anh’s emotional anchor and, as she described, “the remaining legs” helping her daughter move forward. On Station of Love, the mother and daughter sat together for the first time to confront their life-and-death experiences, sharing painful yet sacred memories of motherhood. There were no flowery words, only simple sentences, silent gazes, and restrained tears that left viewers deeply moved.
What makes Breaking Through Limits resonate is not merely the tragedy, but the choice to keep going. Refusing to settle for mere survival, Nguyen Phuong Anh decided to make a fresh start. Now approaching 40, she enrolled in a photo editing course at the Collective of Living with Resilience, pursuing a new way to earn a living and reaffirm her self-worth.
For Phuong Anh, learning is not just about making a living, it is also a way to continue contributing and spreading positive energy within the community of people with disabilities. “No matter the circumstances, as long as I can give something of value, I will keep trying until my last moment”, she said, a simple statement that encapsulates the core message Station of Love wishes to convey.
Station of Love: Breaking Through Limits' calm and sincere storytelling style allows each viewer to find their own empathy and strength. The program ends, but Nguyen Phuong Anh’s journey continues as a living testament that actual limits lie not in the body, but in belief, love, and the will to never give up.
