One Book Can Empower a Child
In many places in the world,/children cannot go to school. This is the story of those children/and of Shanti Volunteer Association (SVA),/a Japanese NGO,/which is trying to help them.
Phea is a thirteen-year-old girl/living in a village in Cambodia. Every morning/she goes to the river and into the forest/to get fish and fruit,/which she sells in town. She used to go to school. But when she was in the fourth grade,/her family could no longer pay the daily 30-yen fee. She had to quit school.
Phea says shyly,/“I can write my name,/but I’ve forgotten many things. I wonder/if I can get a decent job.”
Hak is fourteen. When he was in the second grade,/he left school to go to work. He collects plastic bottles and metal fragments/in a dump in the slums of Phnom Penh/for about 100 yen a day.
“I envy my friends who attend school,”/he says. “I wish I could study, too.”
It is reported/that more than 70 million children around the world/cannot go to school. To help children like Phea and Hak,/SVA has been working/to give every child an opportunity to learn.
SVA works not only in Cambodia/but also in Afghanistan,/Thailand,/Myanmar,/Laos,/and Nepal. It cooperates with local governments and communities/to build schools and libraries,/and also to send books to children.
One of those children is Nool,/who lives in Afghanistan. He used to live with his father/in his home village. His father raised cows,/and Nool helped him take the cows out to the field. Then one day,/their village was bombed. Nool and his father/just managed to escape with their lives.
They had to move to a nearby town. Their lives were extremely difficult. Their house had a leaky roof/patched up with pieces of plastic. They didn’t even have blankets/to keep themselves warm. They lacked food,/so they only had tea for breakfast. Nool was still afraid of bombing. His daily life was not happy.
Then, one day,/Nool had an opportunity/to visit an SVA library. Now he has a purpose in life. He says,/“I really enjoy going to the library. I have lots of fun there. I will study hard. I promise.” He dreams of being able to read books/and study at a school.
Orathai is another child/whose life changed for the better/thanks to SVA. She lives in Thailand. As a child,/she lived in a slum area in Bangkok. Both parents were illiterate.
When Orathai was four,/an SVA library truck/pulled up in her slum. Kids gathered around,/and a volunteer read them a picture book,/The Giant Turnip. It is a story about an old couple/who grow a turnip so big/that they need their granddaughter,/a dog,/a cat,/and a mouse/to pull it out of the ground.
Orathai never forgot that moment. She says,/“The story taught me/that if people want to achieve something big,/they have to work together.”
When Orathai was eight,/SVA built a library near her house. It became a second home for her. She read books/and took part in activities/like singing and dancing. She still remembers/SVA’s helping her expand her world.
Orathai is now a successful Thai diplomat.
An SVA staff member in Myanmar says,/“Children seem to have learned thinking skills/through reading. Kids love storytelling sessions/and are absorbed in the world of picture books.” Her dream is/to put a picture book in every child’s hand. SVA tries to make that dream come true. It takes a lot of books.
SVA collects about 18,000 books a year/in Japan. The SVA staff translate the books/into other Asian languages/and print the translated passages on stickers. Then, volunteers paste the stickers/over the Japanese words. It takes a volunteer about one hour/to finish one book. A lot of helping hands are needed.
One volunteer says,/“I was interested in doing some volunteer work,/and it was an easy first step forward/to make a small change in my life.”
Another says,/“I used to enjoy reading picture books/to my kids. Now that they have grown up,/it gives me joy/to imagine kids all over Asia/enjoying picture books I help to make.”
One picture book can change a life/and empower a child. Just ask Orathai,/the Thai diplomat/who has never forgotten The Giant Turnip.
In many places in the world,/children cannot go to school. This is the story of those children/and of Shanti Volunteer Association (SVA),/a Japanese NGO,/which is trying to help them.
Phea is a thirteen-year-old girl/living in a village in Cambodia. Every morning/she goes to the river and into the forest/to get fish and fruit,/which she sells in town. She used to go to school. But when she was in the fourth grade,/her family could no longer pay the daily 30-yen fee. She had to quit school.
Phea says shyly,/“I can write my name,/but I’ve forgotten many things. I wonder/if I can get a decent job.”
Hak is fourteen. When he was in the second grade,/he left school to go to work. He collects plastic bottles and metal fragments/in a dump in the slums of Phnom Penh/for about 100 yen a day.
“I envy my friends who attend school,”/he says. “I wish I could study, too.”
It is reported/that more than 70 million children around the world/cannot go to school. To help children like Phea and Hak,/SVA has been working/to give every child an opportunity to learn.
SVA works not only in Cambodia/but also in Afghanistan,/Thailand,/Myanmar,/Laos,/and Nepal. It cooperates with local governments and communities/to build schools and libraries,/and also to send books to children.
One of those children is Nool,/who lives in Afghanistan. He used to live with his father/in his home village. His father raised cows,/and Nool helped him take the cows out to the field. Then one day,/their village was bombed. Nool and his father/just managed to escape with their lives.
They had to move to a nearby town. Their lives were extremely difficult. Their house had a leaky roof/patched up with pieces of plastic. They didn’t even have blankets/to keep themselves warm. They lacked food,/so they only had tea for breakfast. Nool was still afraid of bombing. His daily life was not happy.
Then, one day,/Nool had an opportunity/to visit an SVA library. Now he has a purpose in life. He says,/“I really enjoy going to the library. I have lots of fun there. I will study hard. I promise.” He dreams of being able to read books/and study at a school.
Orathai is another child/whose life changed for the better/thanks to SVA. She lives in Thailand. As a child,/she lived in a slum area in Bangkok. Both parents were illiterate.
When Orathai was four,/an SVA library truck/pulled up in her slum. Kids gathered around,/and a volunteer read them a picture book,/The Giant Turnip. It is a story about an old couple/who grow a turnip so big/that they need their granddaughter,/a dog,/a cat,/and a mouse/to pull it out of the ground.
Orathai never forgot that moment. She says,/“The story taught me/that if people want to achieve something big,/they have to work together.”
When Orathai was eight,/SVA built a library near her house. It became a second home for her. She read books/and took part in activities/like singing and dancing. She still remembers/SVA’s helping her expand her world.
Orathai is now a successful Thai diplomat.
An SVA staff member in Myanmar says,/“Children seem to have learned thinking skills/through reading. Kids love storytelling sessions/and are absorbed in the world of picture books.” Her dream is/to put a picture book in every child’s hand. SVA tries to make that dream come true. It takes a lot of books.
SVA collects about 18,000 books a year/in Japan. The SVA staff translate the books/into other Asian languages/and print the translated passages on stickers. Then, volunteers paste the stickers/over the Japanese words. It takes a volunteer about one hour/to finish one book. A lot of helping hands are needed.
One volunteer says,/“I was interested in doing some volunteer work,/and it was an easy first step forward/to make a small change in my life.”
Another says,/“I used to enjoy reading picture books/to my kids. Now that they have grown up,/it gives me joy/to imagine kids all over Asia/enjoying picture books I help to make.”
One picture book can change a life/and empower a child. Just ask Orathai,/the Thai diplomat/who has never forgotten The Giant Turnip.