My name is Sonnai Bibi. I am 9 years old and am the only daughter in
the family.
Firstly, me and the rest of my family go to a bazaar to buy and sell
our goods. Shops open at sunset, we have few shops in the Bangladesh countryside,
some of these include:- Food shops, clothes shops (for making clothes),
house hold item shops, pharmacies and tea shops.
We usually walk from place to place, due to rutted roads, especially in
bad weather, due to this goods are transported by boats along the river.
Secondly, we go to the market where things like spices, vegetables and
fish are sold and weighed by hand scales.
After this granddad usually goes for him tea with his friends and we
head home because girls and women aren't allowed in!
Then I usually get some water from the tube well, pump, which is about
a five minute walk away and I carry the water back in puter jugs.
Once I get home the farming has been done by Dad and Brothers, fish
have also been caught by them too.
Once the harvesting has been done by me and my Mum. We booth cook the
evening meal, which is usually, rice, chilli and onions (meat and fish
are on special nights, they are a luxury).
We eat our meal on the floor using a piece of material to put the
plates on, we then talk for a while.
After this me and my brothers go to the video club (If my parents
can afford it), it is 5 takka each but it is an excellent night,
well worth the money.
- Helping with meals.
- Harvesting.
- Going to school.
- Helping to carry and sell goods at the Bazaar.
- I have few possessions but my favourite must be my Sindy doll,
who is from a person in England. I brush her hair with twigs
and wash her in the nearby pond, IT IS GREAT! - I like the community spirit in my village, but I don't like the
NO WOMEN rule in the tea bar.
School is every morning, Monday to Thursday but not in the
afternoons because it is too hot. Our school is for people
up to the age of 8 and is for both girls and boys, its made
out of reed, wood and corrugated iron.
Me and Abdul are the first children in the family to have
the chance to go to school, we are very privileged!
At school we play 'Donla Chhut' we all sit in a circle
and drop rope behind each others back, trying not to let them see.
My Mum also comes to school, once a week, to learn how to
read and write, because she never went to school. I hope my life
was useful for you to hear about although it is very hard and
tiring for me and the rest of my family.