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Life of Desperation |
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Malee’s family lives in a decrepit bamboo cottage with a corrugated tin roof that is barely standing. There is little room to accommodate the six people who live there and has very little inside in terms of furnishings or cooking utensils. The family is receiving some support from the sub-district local government in the form of solar cells so that they can have access to electricity though they only have one light-bulb in the cottage. |
Malee has to commute to her school which is 4 kilometers away from her house on weekdays. And on weekends she does housework and takes care of her two cousins to help her grandparents who are both more than 70 years old and work doing odd jobs which results in an unstable income. Malee’s parents occasionally send a few hundred baht to support her and come to visit the family at New Year and Songkran (Thai New Year.) She only sees them twice a year at most and misses them terribly throughout the year. Malee’s grandparents do their best to take care of their four school-age grandchildren but as they are elderly and unwell it is very difficult for them to provide for these youngsters.
Although life thus far has been difficult for Malee and her family; she is struggling to make a brighter future for herself and her family by continuing her education. She has requested scholarship assistance for the 2009 academic year so that she can remain in school rather than quitting to help look after her family and earn a living. She wants to train to be a nurse so that she can help others in the future.
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