Already he is an experienced cattle trader, and that is in his spare time. He still attends school every day - paid for from money he makes trading cattle here in his hometown.

Apisit ignores the jibes of his school friends, who taunt him with names like "hoi", or cattle trader.

"I earn between Bt1,500 and Bt2,000 a week. I don't mind when my schoolmates call me names," the 11th grader from Rong Kham School says.

This young man dreamed of a career in the military but now appreciates what moonlighting at the cattle yards has taught him.

Apisit explains he has gained experience and much needed cash for a better education. "When I saw my family's income falling three years ago, I told myself I had to help out - or at least stop asking my parents for money," he recalls.

This teenager's mother and father do odd jobs and farm to get by. Persistent flooding over the past six years has devastated harvests and their household income.

Hoping to get the family ahead and free of hardship Apisit took on odd jobs, too, doing anything and everything people hired him for.

"Then one day three years ago, I went to a market and saw people selling cattle. This got me thinking about my maternal grandfather. He had worked in that field before and he was quite rich," Apisit says.

So - just 13 - the boy persuaded his grandfather to teach him the skills needed to break into the cattle game. He hopped aboard his grandfather's truck and started travelling with him seeking out top livestock - at a good price.

"I've had to learn all the good characteristics of cattle," Apisit recalls. After working alongside his grandfather for more than a year he believed the time was right to strike out on his own.

But to get started he needed money. His mother was soon convinced and agreed to help him secure a Bt40,000 loan from the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives.

"Two of my older friends and I went into business together. We share all the costs and the profits."

This rainy season Apisit says he is concentrating on beef cattle - "not beautiful cattle".

"At this time of year people are not interested in buying beautiful cattle. It's difficult to find grass to graze them," he explains.

His short experience with cattle has taught him that not every deal is a winner. "Sometimes the cattle get a broken leg during transport to market and we are forced to sell at a loss.

"We've learned to be more careful," Apisit says.

In spite of his trading activities, this teenager still finds the time to hit the books when he gets home.

His mother Homjan says she is a proud woman.

"I feel sad when I see him working so hard while other children his age are relaxing and having fun and playing sports in their free time.

"Sometimes it's hard to force back my tears when I see him trudging back home from work, drenched to the skin from the rain," she says.

Wichit Radapat

The Nation

KALASIN