One Year Later: Min Min's Story
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“I like to draw,” says Min Min. “And I take books home and read with my friends.” |
Then, the 6-year-old had just survived the worst natural disaster his country had ever witnessed: Cyclone Nargis. The storm on May 2–3, 2008, ripped through his village in Kungyangon Province, destroying his home and school. His village was a tangled mess of fallen trees and scattered debris. All that was familiar and safe for the little boy was swept away by the wind and rain.
Eight children from his village of 600 people perished in the storm.
At the time, Min Min's mother, San San Lwin, said her son was frightened by the rain and winds that continued as the country's wet season wore on. He was reticent to speak to others. However, playing and studying at school helped soothe his fears.
Today the energetic and curious 7-year-old now delights in seeing visitors and is engaged in his studies.
"I like to draw," says Min Min. "And I take books home and read with my friends."
By June 1, 2008, Save the Children had set up a temporary school and a child-friendly space for Min Min and his classmates, bringing a much-needed sense of normalcy to them and a chance to continue their studies and look toward the future. The child-friendly space has since been transformed into an early childhood center. Programs there allow children a chance to be kids — to express themselves through playing, singing and drawing, led by older girls from the village who have been trained by the agency.
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Min Min at home with his mother San San Lwin. Credit: Jim Holmes |
"Min Min is smarter and less fearful now that he plays at the center. I am glad. I want him to be educated. I want him to go to the university," his mother says.
In addition to assisting children's return to school, Save the Children also provides livelihoods programs so that adults may earn the income needed to rebuild their lives and care for their children. Min Min's parents received a piglet to raise and ultimately sell for a profit. His father is a day laborer and his mother grows vegetables, which do not bring in income sufficient for the family.
"Life is not yet back to normal, but the pig will help," says San San Lwin. "We are not getting a good price for our vegetables as the prices dropped. And my husband's daily income is not stable."
More than 4.000 schools were destroyed or damaged after Nargis. In the months following the cyclone, Save the Children was able to mount one of its largest emergency responses in its history. The agency has helped 137,000 children get back into school; supported 40,000 families with cash grants to restart their livelihoods; and provided 60,000 people with drinking water through the height of the dry season, among other programs. In the year following Cyclone Nargis, Save the Children has assisted more than 600,000 people, nearly half of them children, who were most affected by the storm.
Return to Myanmar: Direct from the Field
Last Updated May 2009
