Small acts lead to big changes by Maroi Ech-Charkaouy, Morocco
Today, I decided to take my little siblings to the beach. It is Ramadan so the beach was quite empty; there were only a few kids there, swimming and having fun. My siblings easily made new friends, and they started to hangout and play games together. My little brother approached me and asked if we had anything to eat, so I gave him a biscuit that he handed over to one of his new beach friends. I simply assumed that the kid was there with his friends and they were probably hungry.
Before leaving the beach, I gave my brother some money and told him to go buy something with his friend, and bring something back for his little sisters. He came back with some biscuits and yoghurt, which he said was for his new friend.
My father was coming to pick us up, so I called him and asked him if we could take my brother’s friends with us in the car, since they were alone and would have to go by bus. My father immediately agreed since they are just 10 and 11 year old kids, so they could easily fit in the car.
The kid whom my brother had given the biscuit to and bought the yoghurt for had another destination that was far from ours, so we dropped him off near a bus station, I knew little about his story. When the kid left the car, my little brother turned to me with a sad face and said, “This poor one lost his father, and his mother kicked him and his siblings out to the street.” I was so surprised and had no words, I simply asked, “Where does he live?” My brother replied that he lived in the streets. I asked my brother why he didn’t inform me, and he answered that he couldn’t find a way to tell me without making the kid feel embarrassed or something.
This kid is only 11 years old or so, living alone in the streets, no one to care for him or love him, though he was so happy. He played with my siblings and had fun with them the entire day, and I had no clue about his situation. However, my brother’s behavior when he learned about the kid’s situation warmed my heart. My brother is 10 years old, and he managed to keep the kid happy and treat him equally, making him feel loved. When I sent them to buy some food, my brother knew that the kid was hungry, so my brother told him he could get anything he wanted, without even asking me, my brother did the right thing. When I told my brother that he should have told me about the kid’s situation and that maybe we could have given him some money or something, my brother surprised me when he told me that he invited the kid to live with us. My 10 year old brother has the biggest heart, to ask a kid living in the streets to come live with us, and that we would be able to help him. My brother did not ask for permission, he acted as any human should do for another human being in need. The kid was very happy when we left, he felt loved and he felt that he was part of something, and that he had made a good friend. I am not sure if my brother will ever see him again, since the kid has no exact address , but this encounter left an impact on my brother as well as the kid.
We cannot change the world, but we can make small changes in people’s lives. And I learned that from my 10 year old brother.
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