I need my MUM

Biamuka Mabosko, 14 years old

From Mubende, now living in Kisenyi, Kampala

“I just want to go home and see my mum again. I know they must be worried. They probably think I’m dead.”

Biamuka’s story begins in pain. At only 14, he made the hard decision to leave home after a violent encounter with his father.

“One day, my dad beat me badly. I got really angry. I had about 15,000 shillings with me. So the next morning, I went to the bus park. I told the taxi guy I had only 5,000 and asked if he could take me to Kampala. He said, ‘Come, let’s go.’ That’s how I ended up here.”

He has now lived on the streets of Kampala for two and a half years, navigating life in one of the toughest environments for a child. Despite everything, Biamuka hasn’t lost hope. “I really want to go back and see my mum. That’s all I want. I think of her all the time.”

Biamuka keeps the little money he earns with a lady who sells chips and cassava nearby. “I trust her. If she moves one day, well, such things happen,” he shrugs with a mixture of innocence and realism that only the streets can teach.

When asked if he would return to school if given the chance, his responded with longing, “Yes, I want to study. But before that, I just want to go home. I miss my family. I don’t remember the way back anymore, but if someone took me, I would gladly go.”

His life on the streets has not been easy. He speaks softly about the hardships encountered. “Life is not good here. When it rains, we have nowhere to hide. Sometimes people beat us for no reason. It’s a difficult life.”

When asked about substance use, Biamuka confesses that he uses drugs to numb the pains and give him another reality. “Yes, I smoke weed and sniff mafuta. But I really want to stop. I want to leave that life.”

On Thursday, the Mukono Easter Mission reached out to one of the most vulnerable and often forgotten groups in our society; the street children. Through a special outreach and lunch organized by AEE-U, 150 children were welcomed, loved, and ministered to. We spoke to some of them. Here are some of the stories shared by the children. Stories that reflect both the pain they’ve endured and the deep need for love, healing, and restoration. As you read, please keep them in your prayers.