My name is Ashish* and I was born in Mumbai where my father worked as a photographer. Most of the time he could not find work and my mother worked as a maid in other homes to make ends meet. It was nearly impossible as we were a joint family living in the slums. I also had another brother who was 3 years younger to me. Our circumstances were desperate but even then my father sent me to school which I loved. He always told me to study hard and become someone great in my life. He provided for us whenever he could find work and whenever his health allowed it. He died of AIDS and left us with no home, no money and a bleak future. I had to leave school as my mother could not pay for books and uniform on her meagre salary. Food became very scarce and hunger was a constant companion. Whatever my mother earned was spent on my younger brother and my grandmother’s medication. I roamed the streets begging for money and food and living on generosity of shopkeepers who would sometimes give me a packet of biscuits.The Pastor of the church my mother attended took pity on us and made arrangements to have me admitted into El Shaddai Homes for children in Goa. I came here in June and my life changed completely. I got love, care, enough to eat and my distant dream of education became a reality once again. I was admitted into school again. How proud I was of my new uniform and my books. They even gave me a raincoat and new sandals for my feet. All the teachers made me feel special. Gone was the abuse of the streets. I did not have to beg anymore for food. Three square meals a day, hot bath, clean clothes and a warm dry mat to sleep on. My life had changed completely. I have made plenty of friends here. I like to play and paint. I like to study too. My sponsors came to see me and they took a lot of pictures of me. They made me feel like I was the best boy in the world. I made them a special card and sent it for Christmas. I feel so good when I think of them. The best event I enjoy here at El Shaddai is the weekly beach outings. I love to go to the sea and swim in the water and build sand castles. I am enjoying a childhood I thought I would never have thanks to the beautiful people who care for me.I do miss my mother and my brother. I wish we could live together as a family. My ambition in life is to be a doctor. I want to help poor people who cannot afford medicines and people like my father. I thank God everyday for the staff and children of El Shaddai Charitable Trust.*Names have been changed to protect identity.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 3rd, 2008 at 5:27 am and is filed under First Person. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.