1) Rabeea Bakhshi is an 8-year old girl from Afghanistan who was sold by her parents, along with her 5-year old sister Latifa, to a man named Badee Majeed to work in his brick factory to pay off a debt. 2) At the factory, the children were forced to work from dawn to night with little food or rest and faced physical punishment if they did not work hard enough. 3) One autumn, a boy named Latif convinced Rabeea and the other children to escape from the factory. They succeeded in fleeing while Badee was napping and were reunited with their families. Badee was later arrested.

1. My story
My name is Rabeea Bakhshi I am eight and I have a little sister
Latifa bakhshi she is only five. We live in Afghanistan. Our parents
sold us to Badee Majeed a mean man, to work in his brick factory.
Because our parents owe Badee some money that they couldn’t pay
of the depth so they have to sell us to him until we have money to
pay of the depth. Our parents were really sad that they have to sell
us but they had no choice.
As we drove to Badee’s factory our house became smaller and
smaller I thought we would never see them again. When we arrived
at badee’s factory he told us that we must work from morning to
night, we were not allowed to talk, not allowed to rest except at
night, and will have two small meals in a day which is morning and
night. He also said if we did something wrong he will send us to the
chain room which was a small room that has chains hanging from
the ceiling so he can chain your hands. Then he showed us that we
needed to work for five years to pay of the depth. Then he showed
us where we were going work and where we are going to eat and
sleep. Then he introduced us to the children who were working
there; there was Nabila, Fahim and Fara the twins, Geeti and
Ghezal.
At night Badee gave us a little piece of bread to eat then we
slept in a rectangular box that had few sheets at the bottom, a
small pillow and a blanket, it was not very comfortable but it is
better than sleeping on the hard dusty floor. Latifa slept in the box
beside me sometimes we would all complain about our aching back
and Badee would hear us then we will spend the night in the chain
room so I shouldn’t complain. The next morning Badee woke us up
at dawn he gave us some bread to share and then
“Go to work!” he shouted.
He told latifa and I that we will get bricks near the pipes and lay
the bricks twelve rows of twenty. Then you pile another twelve rows
of twenty on top of the other twelve rows of twenty the next day.
Guess how hard was lifting the bricks from the pipes to the place I
was laying my bricks. Each brick weigh so much that I think I’m
caring a gold bar. Latifa took five minutes to lift the brick and take
it back to the place she was working.
Badee would shout, “Hurry up hurry up!”
When it was night and we were done we were exhausted
especially Lafita and Geeti since they were the youngest.
After we ate and Badee went back to his house, which was next
to where we stayed. The oldest girl Ghezal told us to form a little
circle so we can talk. We talked about ourselves, what we like,
where we wish to be. Like my wish is to be in London on the London
Eye looking at the view from the window. We talked about escaping

2. some day from Badee. I made friends with a girl named Nabila
about the same age as me. The next morning after breakfast
Badee shouted “go to work”!.
Days went by harder and harder. I’ve been here for almost a year, I
feel like we never leave. I’ve been getting use to the brick factory
these days sometimes we would sneak up to Badee’s house and
smell the delicious smell of roasted turkey. Nabila wished just to
have a bite of that delicious roasted turkey some day. But all we get
to eat was left over bread that Badee had for breakfast, dinner, or
lunch, sometimes we didn’t have breakfast and dinner at all
because there weren’t any leftover bread so we would go to sleep
with an empty stomach, our stomachs will grumble the whole night
and we wont be able to sleep. And then the next day we would all
be tired and sleepy and will not be able to work properly then we
will get chained in the chain room one by one, it was terrible feeling
being there alone. One spring a new kid arrived at Badee’s factory
at night right in the middle of our meal he was about my age and
very skinny. His name is Latif Kamal said Badee, after Badee went
back to his house we all welcomed the newcomer,
He said “my family sold me to a farmer to work but the farmer
said I was to talkative so he sold me to Badee”.
Latif was brave sometimes he even get chained in the chain
room but he wasn’t afraid when he came out. We felt like he’s a
hero or a grown up because he was always fighting with Badee. One
autumn he said we should escape, we were all talking at once and
asking questions like where do we go or what should we do or how
we are going to escape from Badee. Latif said we will work as usual
and when Badee goes back into his house we will escape and into
the road.
So the next day it happened we waited till Badee went into his
house and then ran out and into the busy street we were so happy
to be out of Badee’s brick factory we fear Badee would come
strolling out of the factory catching us and then chaining us in the
chain room. But he never did, I bet he is taking his afternoon nap.
We wandered around looking for each other’s home finally Latifa
and I found our families and we thanked Latif for all that. Our
parents were over joyed to see us they cried, but Badee never
came back to find Latifa and I. Then one day we received a letter
from Latif that he told the police that Badee has been arrested by
the police because of his evilness and also Latif found his own
family we all cheered and laughed and clapped and that time we
were all free. And maybe some day I will be in London ridding in the
London Eye looking at the view from the window. Maybe I could get
a good education in London and invite all my friends there which is
Latif, Nabila, Geeti, Ghezal, Fara and Farim and of course my little
sister Latifa and my parents. Maybe it will happen not exactly. I felt
happy because we were free and we get to live with our family. Also

3. I made some new friends and sometimes we will be able to
communicate with each other. I also feel quite sour for the running
and working from morning to night in the brick factory.