The person I know that did deal with many stressors as a child was my dad and the main stressor he dealt with was poverty as a child. He grew up in a household of 10 children including himself plus my grandma and grandpa in Tchula, Mississippi. My dad told me when he was a child they did not have a lot of money and that he and his siblings had only a few pairs of clothing and shoes to get them by. They had an outfit for school and a few outfits for play. He did mention one thing that stuck out to me was that his parents could only afford to buy them all one pair of shoes each which was a pair of dress shoes they needed for school, my dad said that his dress shoes got so worn out that he had to put cardboard and tape at the bottom to cover the holes. This was so sad to hear what he had to go through but he said he was taught by his parents to appreciate what they do have. My dad said he never complained he would work extra hard to keep the things he did have in good condition because he knew he would not get another pair to replace the things he messed up because his parents couldn't afford it. He said this taught him to appreciate everything in life and it made him a better person and he worked extra hard to make sure that all of his children, me and my siblings never had to go through that and I am grateful for that.
Stress on Children in Africa
Many children in Africa seem to deal with a lot of different stressors from their economy and one happens to be disease. Children in Africa face many different challenges and things that can cause disease to them such as clean drinking water and environment. Many families in Africa suffer from poverty which in turn makes them unable to always provide clean drinking water for their children. The rate of death among children has decreased over time in regards to disease and poverty, but there is still a long way to go. In places like Kenya and Uganda poverty is a very complex problem. In Uganda the access to clean water can be scarce and families usually have to travel a great distance to get clean water supply. So a program was launched in Uganda in the Wakiso District child fund to give families water jars so that they do not have to travel so far to get clean water. Clean water was also a problem in Gambia until recently families use to have to rely on unclean and overused water. The child fund for the child development centers in Sibanor got funding from the world bank and local partners to construct a water pyramid which collected rainwater for the families and children in Uganda. The water pyramid has really helped the people of Uganda, it provides more that 1,320 gallons of water to the people and children daily. Although children still do suffer from many diseases that cannot be prevented in Africa there are many child funds and partners who work to collect funds through monthly giving partners that can help to fund more programs and different things to help with the poverty and disease.
Resource:
https://www.childfund.org/Assessing-the-Burden-of-Disease-in-Africa/
Brittney,
ReplyDeleteMy father situation was the same growing up, My father is the second oldest of nine children and they were raised by a single mother, so needless to say they did not have much growing up. My dad told my sisters and I that he had to go and do things he was not proud of just so he could wear the latest clothes and help his mother out financially. When he met my mom, he started making an honest living, and he promise us that he would work hard so we would never have to want for nothing. Just as your dad told you and your siblings my father told us to make sure we appreciate everything that we have.
It's hurts me to see how the children in South Africa are stressed, because of lack of food and water. I wish I could help them all.
Once again just as our father's said, we need to appreciate all of the things we have and don't take anything for granted.