In a small dusty town in Somalia, there lived a boy named Abdullahi, who was just 12 years old. He had no fancy clothes, no phone, and no money. His family lived in a tiny two-room house made of corrugated metal and wood. His father had passed away when Abdullahi was 7, leaving behind his mother and two younger siblings.
Instead of going to school like other kids, Abdullahi worked. Every day after Fajr prayer, he would grab his small wooden box filled with glue, thread, scissors, and a rusty needle and walk around the town shouting:"Kabo jabtay! Kabaha waan hagaajiyaa!" ("Broken shoes! I fix shoes!")
He would sit by the roadside or near the markets and fix people’s worn-out sandals and torn shoes. Sometimes he’d earn 5,000 Somali Shillings, sometimes nothing. But he never complained. He used every shilling to buy rice, flour, and water for his family. His mother, who washed clothes for people, always cried silently at night — not because she was weak, but because she was proud of
One hot afternoon, a man in a clean white shirt and shiny shoes came by and gave Abdullahi his torn leather shoe to fix. The boy worked carefully, sewing the sole with perfect precision, cleaning the dirt, and polishing it using a little oil.
The man was surprised by the boy’s skill and asked,
“Where did you learn this?”
Abdullahi smiled, “My father was a shoemaker before he died. I learned by watching him.”
The man nodded and handed him $5 USD, which was more than Abdullahi had ever seen in one day. He ran home in joy, and that night they had a full meal with meat, rice, and even some soda. But the man didn’t stop there.
The next week, that same man returned — but this time with a van. He was the owner of a technical school in Mogadishu. He offered Abdullahi a free scholarship to learn mechanics, electronics, and business.
Abdullahi hesitated. If he went to school, who would feed his family?
But his mother told him something he would never forget:
“If you learn, you’ll feed not just us — but many more one day.”
So he went.
By 18, Abdullahi had his own repair workshop, fixing phones, shoes, radios, and even motorcycles. He hired two boys from the streets and paid them every week.
At 22, he started a small factory that made affordable sandals from recycled tires. His brand, "Abdi Steps," became famous across the region for helping poor people afford durable shoes.
He didn’t stop there. He opened a free school for street children where they could learn trades and computer skills.
Today, Abdullahi is a young entrepreneur, still humble, still working with his hands, and still remembering the days he walked barefoot shouting “Kabo jabtay!”
He proved you don’t need money to start. You just need skill, patience, and heart.
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