As a Vietnamese who left his homeland but never left the ancestors, the author would like to thank his Glorious Vietnam with the contributions of the National Ancestors of Hùng Kings and the generations of predecessors who shed their blood and hard work to establish, develop, and protect their nation.
As a refugee, the author wishes to thank the United States that accepted and helped his family, his countrymen, and himself to resettle in the U.S. The welfare assistance programs and the financial aids offered to him the precious and effective opportunities of learning and integrating into the streamline of the American society.
He is very grateful to all his teachers in Vietnam and the U.S. who provided him a liberal education of ethics, intelligence, and physique. For this study, he particularly thanks Meditation Master Thích Nhất Hạnh, Professor Robin Kennedy, Ph.D. Richard M. Lee, Ph.D. Đoàn Kiêm Trần for their helpful insights and means.
Also, he wishes to thank all the parents and children who participated in the study, the members of the Deer Park Group of Studying and Practicing Buddhism, and all of his friends and co-workers. All of them offered the good conditions for him to study and serve people in need.
The author’s deep gratitude goes to his father and parents in-law who passed away; to his younger brother Quên Duy Trần, who lost his life in the Vietnam War as a soldier of the Republic of Vietnam when he was nineteen years old. To his mother Thà Thị Lê living in Vietnam, his wife Hạnh Thị Ngô, and three children An Như, Duy Quang, and Khánh Hiền, he can only express enormous gratitude. They have given him a great deal of happiness and well-being. He thinks of his mother, his wife, and his first daughter (she is disabled) as the three bodhisattvas who help him without any condition. He feels encouraged that his son and last daughter are outstanding students and are bilingual and bicultural.
He never forgets his siblings, relatives, friends, and vulnerable people who are living in Vietnam. Most of them are poor and have difficulties in daily life. How to help them is the question that has made it difficult to sleep for nights. Finally but most gratefully, the author recognizes that the Buddhism has lighted the values during his life, helped him overcome traumas, and encouraged him to serve all beings. Thanks to Buddhism, he served as a social worker before attending the social work major.
