After his parents left home in Si Chomphu district one day and never returned, Thon had to wander and beg for money and food from kind-hearted people.

Learning of the boy's woes, Her Majesty instructed Khon Kaen Governor Chet Thanawat to arrange to care for the boy, for which Her Majesty has paid Bt100,000 since last October.

"I'm very proud to be getting help from Her Majesty. Without her I don't know what my life would be like. Now I live a better life with no more begging," said Thon, who lives in a single-storey house for guests within the governor's compound with 57-year-old nanny Thongyoy Khomkhao.

"I'll study hard and be a good citizen and in future I'll be a policeman so that I can work in return for Her Majesty's kindness," he said.

"Deep in my heart, I still miss my parents all the time and I wish they had taken me to stay with them. Although living together would mean difficulty and poverty, I would be willing to put up with it because they gave birth to me," Thon said.

Seeing parents picking their kids up from school, the boy says he cannot help thinking about his parents. "But I don't envy them. My life every day is good enough," he said.

Thon said he had adapted to the new life at home and new friends at school. Every day he is sent to school and taken home by a police volunteer and, in the evening, he plays football with 20 kids at Beuang Thung Sang public park before coming home to eat dinner, watch television and go to bed.

On weekends, Thon gets up at 6am to wash a pavilion on a pond and then play with two pet Golden Retrievers, before he returns home.

His nanny, Thongyoy, was a mother of four herself but two of her children died. The others now have their own families.

She said she used to work as a babysitter and took the job to care for Thon right away because she felt sorry that the boy was growing up without his parents.

Thongyoy said she felt a bond with the boy who is like her own son and she cares for him and teaches him everything as a mother would do. In return, Thon has become attached to her and calls her "Mum".

"Every day he wais me before going to school and always asks for my advice. He's a good and loveable boy. Every day we sleep in the same bed as I want him to feel warmth at heart," the nanny said.

The boy's guardian Chet said he emphasised warmth and encouragement for the boy while providing care for his hygiene and living conditions. Discipline is also taught by requiring the boy to inform his guardian when going out and to come back at the scheduled time as well as working on small tasks assigned to him. Chet said Thon has been taught to be grateful to Her Majesty and to study hard and behave well.

Chet said Her Majesty always asks about Thon's well-being and he keeps her regularly informed through reports and pictures.

Athittaya Wichitanurak

The Nation

Khon Kaen