Eh’Klu Sae has had a hard life, but it has not stopped her singing.

Her troubles began on a day like any other day, when she was just an infant.

Her parents had breakfast and got ready to go their rice fields. They left eight-month-old Eh’Klu Sae in the care of her 12-year-old brother.

But, unknown to her parents the Burmese Army was patrolling in the area. By the time her parents got to the river close to their fields, they heard gunfire. Worried for their four children left at home they ran back to the house.   

By the time they got to the village, houses were on fire. The soldiers were shooting and looting and herding villager’s livestock to take away.   

Eh’Klu Sae’s mother was rounding up her brothers and sisters while her father grabbed her. In the confusion he dropped Eh’Klu Sae, damaging her spine.   

The family hid in the jungle. Eh’Klu Sae’s back was badly injured, but there was no chance for her to get medical help. Her parents had only herbs and bark to treat her twisted and damaged spine.  

“I’ve felt since childhood I was not normal because of my back. I always question ‘why me?’ I always feel I have to be happy even when I’m not. It helps me deal with life,” she said.  

Eh’Klu Sae’s family stayed in Karenni state as internally displaced people (IDP) for about 10 years, before moving to Thailand in 1999.  

Eh’Klu Sae, is not sure about her age, but says she is about 20. She is now a refugee in Mae Hong Son province, northern Thailand, close to the Burma border and says her life is better.  

“I feel happy here. I’ve gone back to school, but my back makes it difficult to sit still for long.”  

In spite of the pain Eh’Klu Sae still wants to continue her studies. In her spare time she writes songs about her life and religion.  

“I write about myself and try to imagine what will happen in my next life.”  

Eh’Klu Sae’s lyrics openly talk about her disability, she sings softly about her life being like a dried out tree. Her voice can be heard around the small refugee village as she hums and sings.   

Eh’Klu Sae misses her family and only sees them once a year when she visits them in their refugee camp near Mae Sarieng.

“My brothers and sisters are all married, I’m the only that isn’t. My father and mother are in the camp. They have no land to cultivate and earn something by doing small jobs.”  

According to the Thai Burma Border Consortium, an organization that shelters, feeds and clothes refugees, Eh’Klu Sae’s family are among the 145,000 Burmese refugees now living in camps in western Thailand. The TBBC says around 500,000 villagers are displaced in eastern Burma.   

In spite of her disability, Eh’Klu Sae says she does feel it is a handicap.

“I can use my hands and legs and I can work like other people. When I finish my schooling I want to teach and help young people to choose a good life.”  

Eh’Klu Sae voice echoes around the small bamboo hut as she sings one of her self-penned songs, before fading into darkened silence.