(Written by a computer instructor in Shanghai)

The story “We Got Money” reminds me of my experiences when I first earned money, and I’ve added what my daughter did, too.

Forty years ago, I was sent to Yunnan to work in the field, and I was there for about three years.  We only got provisions every autumn from the village storage place.  There was a rule that a worker could get more provisions if they worked harder or had more hours.

We never got any cash.  Our parents sent us a little money every year to buy the necessities of life.  We were poor and worked hard, but we always enjoyed the trip to the post office to get that money.  

I had learned to draw in high school and got a job earlier than my associates in the country so I got my first wages while they were still working in the fields.  I was paid only 28 yuan a month, but I was very happy and went to the post office to send them 10 yuan.  I told them that with the rest of my wages I could live well by myself in Yunnan and that I wanted to help them have better days.

I gave 5 yuan to two of my associates, as I wanted to share with them how happy I was to get my first wages.  They went to town and had delicious snacks.  The remaining 13 yuan paid for my food the first month.

The lowest standard of living for one person was 8 yuan at that time, and and it's 500 yuan now in Shanghai.

                My daughter Lynn gave me her first wages, but I suggested that it be divided into three parts.  The first part would come to me, as she lived with us.  The second was put in a bank to start a savings account, and the rest she was to use as her expenses for the month.  She was very happy and gave me a beautiful brooch.  I still have it and like it very much.

                Lynn uses credit cards now.  That’s the way she plans how much she’ll spend for the things she needs.  I have nothing to do with the process anymore; she’s completely self-supporting.

(Written by a former resident of Eritrea)

War in Africa war is unique.  Though it is waged differently in the various countries, there are also similarities.  This is a story about how the cruelty and wretchedness of war took away the childhoods of Emmanuel and Ishmael.  War left a mark on them as they lost their innocence while serving as child soldiers and  discovered that it’s almost impossible to be peaceful while mysterious wars are underway.    

Emmanuel’s childhood was a little different from Ishmael’s, as he told me recently, “There was peace in Sudan for the first three years of my life, but unfortunately I have no memory of it.”  That was because there had been war in his country ever since.

Ishmael was almost twelve when the civil war that he became involved in began.  Before that he had been a student, had enjoyed talent shows and doing fun things with his brother and other friends

Because participating in war had taken away the possibility of having a normal childhood, both young men are now looking for someone who will write up  their life stories.  

Wars in Africa frequently amount to just a lot of foolishness.  Emmanuel lived during the civil war between the south and the north in Sudan.  It involved ethnic differences about equality and justice, and the whole country became involved in the dispute.

Ishmael suffered through a civil war in Sierra Leone that lasted for years.  The clash was between the government’s army and rebels who wanted change.  Both sides, however, became victims.  Deaths of whole families were witnessed and the many others who died included innumerable men, women, children, and the newborn.  There were many incidents of rape and murder.

Both boys had no way to avoid being affected by the different wars. They considered running away but even the most remote part of their countries wouldn’t be safe.  There was no time to think of what to do; they had no alternatives.  Both of their lives were guided by civil war incidents.

After Emmanuel lost his family, a rebel took him to a camp near the Sudan-Ethiopian border where he was taught how to be a soldier even though he was still a child.  Later, he was forced to join the rebel forces.  He thought he was too young to use a gun, but remembers an older rebel telling him, “A gun doesn’t know who is old or young.”

During his first battle, he fought against soldiers from the government of Sudan.  The second battle was a murderous raid against people living in an Ethiopian village. 

Emmanuel was fortunate that after he fought with the rebels for some time he was rescued by an aid worker.  Subsequently sent to England, he became a successful musician, so his story ends well.

Ishmael’s war experience was quite different.  When he was still a child, the army of the government made him sign up, and he subsequently found himself in many dangerous situations.  It was so frightening that he began taking drugs, and his personality changed to the point where the brutal killing of rebels became a daily and enjoyable activity. 

People who had known him before felt that he was no longer the Ishmael that they had known, but fortunately, a friend convinced him to enter rehabilitation and he regained his normal way of behaving.

After enduring all those obstacles, which took incredible effort, he was able to emigrate to the U.S. so he, too, survived the ravages of war.

Both Emmanuel and Ishmael are happy that they are no longer involved in war, and now that they are living in safe countries, they enjoy telling stories of what it was like to be a child soldier.