One night during a festival in the village, he went with his uncle and bet on his whole savings at the gambling table. If he won, he would be able to pay his school fees and all expenses for his stay at the hostel. But, what happened next? All the money he saved up from selling dog meat was gone — taken by the bookie. He had wanted to return to his hostel with a mountain of money, now his luck was turned and he was left with bitterness and tears.
“I asked money from my uncle, but he said that he too had none.”
I heaved a long sigh after listening to Edi’s story. I turned to look at each of the youth sitting silently at the living room. Some were pretending to hold their glasses or fiddle with their hand phones and the others looked dumbfounded, unsure of their thoughts.