29.11.2015

Pilot? Doctor? Politician? Or Mathematician?

Ukjoy Marma, a student of the AHTSS boarding school, is a quiet, cheerful and very nice boy. He is only 16 but has lived through a lot – as a 6-year-old he was left an orphan; if it were not for certain circumstances, his life would have been quite different. Read about his interesting story!

Ukjoy currently goes the 8th grade; and like almost every village boy, he loves playing soccer. At school, he is into Bengali but dislikes math. He has already failed it twice. Well, not everyone is born to be the next Archimedes, Pythagoras or Newton. :-) On the other hand, Ukjoy is a passionate reader. He reads novels and shorts stories written by the well-known Bengali author Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay in the beginning of the 20th century. He has read religious literature, too; for instance he likes a few books by Ellen White.

I won’t be a politician

Ukjoy told us about what he sees as his future career: “At first, I wanted to become a doctor, but I’ve given up on that. I realized I would have had to study a lot and I wasn’t smart enough for that. Then I wanted to be a pilot flying from one country to another and traveling through the whole world, but I changed my mind again. I realized that aircraft accidents have catastrophic consequences, and most people die which makes me afraid. Then I wanted to become a politician, but dropped that idea as well, because when I watched them I found out that most politicians weren’t good people. They fight each other, kill people, don’t keep their word and lie. I don’t want to be such a person. So, now I dream about becoming an IT specialist. I got inspired when working in an office where students enroll in the school. Computers are mighty tools and I think I’d love to work with them.”

Left alone

Ukjoy was born as the third child of a family that lived in a village. He does not recall its name anymore. We only know it is located somewhere in South-East Bangladeshi mountains, which are home to relentless and energetic people of various languages and tribes. Both of his siblings, brother Chaolaprue (20) and sister Ukrashom (25) are already married and have children.

Ukjoy knows his father only from his sister’s stories. He does not remember him at all, not even his face. His sister says their dad was very handsome and worked as a day laborer. He could neither read, nor write. All of a sudden he left his wife and three children on their own. His motives will probably remain unknown to Ukjoy.

His brother and sister were older, so they put up with the situation. But it was a torment for little Ukjoy and especially for his mom Paikrau. Surviving in Bangladesh is difficult enough for a single woman – but she had to take care of her three children! Hard work, worries, poverty… Sometimes she had to skip a meal, so as to ensure enough food for the kids. All this caused that, four years later, this very young (and according to her sister very beautiful) woman died at the young age of 32. The children were left alone. There was no one to take care of them. They did not have anything to eat. Ukjoy’s sister moved to a different family. She became a maid and got married soon after that. Also Chaolaprue started working.

Mysterious stranger

Ukjoy was only a little boy and had no one who would take care of him. For around 2 years, his uncle (from the mother’s side) helped him, giving him cow’s and goat’s milk. And then, out of the blue like an angel, a stranger-missionary came to the rescue. He took little Ukjoy to the AHTSS boarding school. Ukjoy says: “I had never seen him before or after. I remember we left the village early in the morning and arrived to the AHTSS late in the evening. We were welcomed by the then principal, Dr. W. L. Pantra. He was a very nice man. He gave me food and my new life started.” In 2008, Ukjoy joined in the 2nd grade. Since then, none of his relatives has visited him, but he is currently in touch with his sister who calls him from time to time.

Ukjoy has already forgotten how to get to his home village. Yet, his heart desires visiting and getting to know his relatives. He would like to meet his savior one day as well.

“He gave me food and my new life started.”

PS: Ukjoy is one of the more than 200 orphans supported by our donors through the BanglaKids program. Thanks to them, the children can study and eat; they have roofs over their heads; and they have friends and dreams. Thank you for investing in the future of Bangladeshi children. Find more information at www.banglakids.cz/en


More information about program Support BanglaKids

BanglaKids is a development program of ADRA Czech Republic.
Since 1999 we have provided education to 6,500 children in Bangladesh.
Together, we’re giving them an opportunity for a better future.

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