কুমিল্লা ভিক্টোরিয়া সরকারি কলেজ ২০২৪

My name is Amerigo. I am 13 years old and I live on the street, alone. My mother, who is separated from my father, doesn't want me. She told me to go away....... Now she is married to another man. My father lives very far away. I want to go to him, but he won't take me either. I begged him to send me some money so that I could buy a bus ticket. I am still waiting. He hasn't answered. The streets are now my home. Sometimes I find work. I used to collect trash and sell it to a vendor. I stopped doing that after I had a serious infection and a doctor told me to stay away from the trash dump. Once I worked for an ice cream shop owner and sold ice cream on the beach. But I got no money in return. The owner of the shop gave me something to eat, and let me sleep in his hut at night. The work was difficult and painful. The ice cream box is quite heavy when it is full. I had to walk for hours, offering my ice cream to whoever wanted to buy. There were days when I could not even sell one ice cream. In a way, I am lucky because I am alive. My friends who work sorting rubbish in dumps often suffer from serious diseases. One of them was recently killed after he fell into a hole that opened up in the pile of trash. Many of us work for 10 to 12 hours, and get so little in return that we can't even buy food.

For me, like all other children on the street, it is very hard. I am always hungry, and I do not know where I will sleep the next night. I would like to live in my own home and sleep there in peace. The nights are very cold in the winter. You can die of cold in the street.

My name is Amerigo. I am 13 years old and I live on the street, alone. My mother, who is separated from my father, doesn't want me. She told me to go away....... Now she is married to another man. My father lives very far away. I want to go to him, but he won't take me either. I begged him to send me some money so that I could buy a bus ticket. I am still waiting. He hasn't answered. The streets are now my home. Sometimes I find work. I used to collect trash and sell it to a vendor. I stopped doing that after I had a serious infection and a doctor told me to stay away from the trash dump. Once I worked for an ice cream shop owner and sold ice cream on the beach. But I got no money in return. The owner of the shop gave me something to eat, and let me sleep in his hut at night. The work was difficult and painful. The ice cream box is quite heavy when it is full. I had to walk for hours, offering my ice cream to whoever wanted to buy. There were days when I could not even sell one ice cream. In a way, I am lucky because I am alive. My friends who work sorting rubbish in dumps often suffer from serious diseases. One of them was recently killed after he fell into a hole that opened up in the pile of trash. Many of us work for 10 to 12 hours, and get so little in return that we can't even buy food.

For me, like all other children on the street, it is very hard. I am always hungry, and I do not know where I will sleep the next night. I would like to live in my own home and sleep there in peace. The nights are very cold in the winter. You can die of cold in the street.

The time of adolescence is a period of preparation for adulthood during which one experiences several key developments. Besides physical and sexual maturation, these experiences include a movement toward social and economic independence, development of identity, the acquisition of skills needed to carry out adult relationships and roles, and the capacity for abstract reasoning. While adolescence is a time of tremendous growth and potential, it is also a time of considerable risks during which social contexts exert powerful influences.

Many adolescents face pressure to use alcohol, cigarettes or other drugs and to initiate sexual relationships, putting themselves at high risk for intentional and unintentional injuries and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. They also experience a wide range of adjustments and mental health problems. Behaviour patterns established during this period, such as the use or avoidance of drugs and taking or abstaining from sexual risks, can have long-lasting negative or positive effects on future health and well-being. As a result, adults have unique opportunities to influence adolescents.