"The wounds from my childhood are still left open - like when my father would come home drunk and physically abuse my mother. I remember her taking all the pain, with no complaints, because she didn't want us to be the recipients of his brutality. Meanwhile, we would be cowering in the corner of our dingy one-room house, holding on to each other, with tears of helplessness streaming down our faces.”

"It was a very normal day in our house. My younger brother and I were playing and my parents were doing their regular household chores. Suddenly, we heard the door burst open. I saw my uncles barging in and stabbing my mom and dad with a knife.”

“When I lost both my parents to cancer, all hope was lost. My mom passed away due to cancer when I was 10 years old. Little did my sister and I know that my dad, too, would soon die of the same ailment. Nothing can replace my parents, I really miss them a lot. Not a day goes by without me remembering them. The only family I have left is my elder sister who, after marriage, left for her husband’s village. That is when I joined Zaina’s Home. Although my sister visits me every now and then, and it feels nice, it doesn’t come close to the happiness I had with my parents.”

After my father died, my mother did her best to raise me and my brothers, but she unfortunately could not take care of us. She left us to fend for ourselves. My elder brother left school to take care of me and my younger brother. I was 9 years old when I first came to Zaina’s Home. Initially I was troubled and traumatised that my own mother abandoned me, and I had a lot of trouble fitting in. But here at Zaina, every person did their best to make me feel at home, and that really comforted me. They taught me how to read, write and speak English, when I could not write in my own language. They taught me Math, and although I don’t like it, I have learned how to do Math and speak English. They gave me a sense of family and unity.”