I have never been rich. My father is a tractor driver whose income provides only daily meals. He never allows his family to spend money on anything more than the necessities. I have to do part-time odd jobs to earn pocket money. I have never felt ashamed about my family being poor. Whenever a feeling of embarrassment appears, I remember what my mother always says: “Be adjustable in every situation.”

Despite these struggles, my family and I were satisfied with what we have until the day we realised that the house would require urgent renovation. The house, home to many generations, never underwent renovation, and so it looked very old and worn out. I could even see the sky through the thatched roof. Most of the columns were eaten by termites. My mother always reminded me to be careful of every step I take. Once, when I returned from my office for lunch, I stepped on the floor a bit too quickly as I run towards the kitchen. Suddenly, the brittle floor gave way, and gravity pulled m down. Moreover, it happened in the rainy season, which was a nightmare for our house with a leaking roof. At that time, I saw fear in my parents’ eyes. I knew that they were worried about not having enough money to renovate a house in the middle of the rainy season.

Building a house required a large sum of money. We needed to buy logs and nails. To pay for that, my mother planned to borrow money at five percent interest. When that news reached my ears, I was shocked, thinking of the debts we might incur. We were a family that never had debts in our life, and debt is a kind of poison that could gradually kill us mentally and physically.

I sought ways to help my family avoid debt, and I figured out that my father’s tractor could be a solution. I went to my father and explained to him how debt could follow us like a shadow. It could distress us if we could not afford to pay the principal and interest. He agreed with me, and we decided to sell our tractor. The money from the sale of the tractor went to repair the termite damage on my family’s house.

Soon after, on a rainy day in late June in 2017, I proudly came back from my new job as an enumerator at the Advantage Development and Relief Agency, Myanmar (ADRA) with a huge smile, bringing with me an enormous sum of money: 800,000 kyats (502.77 dollars). My happy thoughts were even louder than the sound of the pouring rain, and I was dreaming of buying a computer soon. I drove home on my motorbike, intent on telling my mother to go and purchase a computer the next day. But when I arrived home, my mother was frowning, and my father was sitting lifelessly as the rain came through the holes in the ceiling. These were signs of trouble. They did not have enough money for a new roof. I was stuck between fulfilling my wish and curing my parents’ worries. However, my desire for my parents not to borrow money won out. I gave my mother all of my salary to pay for the roof.

I am studying at Lingnan University right now. Every time I make a video call to the family, I get to see the new house in the village, and it makes me smile. It is not an amazing house, for it is neither large or grand, nor does it have many rooms, but looking at it always reminds me of the meaning of my role as an elder brother in my family.