The drive to the countryside

Having shifted to the urban center some years ago, I had forgotten the sight of the greenery that filled our countryside. A few weeks ago, when my husband suggested that we visit a neighboring village, I was very much against the idea because I had some assignments due and I needed to concentrate on it. Coincidentally, my daughter also had her History project due the following week and she needed time to work on it but then we all thought we needed a break from the mundane routine and the drive away from the town that sunday would do us good and went along with the idea.

The blessing

Some  pictures from my trip to receive the blessing of the relics of Lord Buddha, Sangay Shacha Thupa, and his two chief disciples, Sharibu and Mougelgibu on 22^nd October 2011.

Waiting for the blessing

Source: www.bbs.com.bt

The relics of Lord Buddha, Sangay Shacha Thupa, and his two chief disciples, Sharibu and Mougelgibu arrives today at Dewathang. It will be displayed for three days (from 22nd to 24th October). The people from the neighbouring places have flocked here to receive its blessing since yesterday and the small town is flooding with people of all walks of life. The town had never seen such crowd till now. There is hardly any space to walk on the pavement and the roads are filled with vehicles of all models. I even saw a tata nano this evening. the rooms in the hotels are full and the private residents are also packed with visiting devotees.

The festivity

The much awaited Royal wedding was a festive occasion for every Bhutanese. We also took part in the celebration in our own small ways. Here are some glimpses of the celebration.

teachers at work in the morning

The fairy tale wedding

In the mystical kingdom in the Himalayas

The whole nation celebrated

The union of the destined couple

At the Puna Dewa Chhen-Poi Phodrang,

The seat of the founder of Bhutan.

To the new beginning

source: http://www.facebook.com/jetsunpem

As the countdown began for the historic event in the history of Bhutan, I sat glued to the TV to get the news updates of the event whenever I had some free time at hand (especially in the evenings). It fills me with immense pride to see the King and queen to-be walk hand in hand in public. It is rightly said that “words are few when the heart is full”- the feeling that I am experiencing is beyond words. I rejoice with the whole country and celebrate the royal wedding with pure joy and sincere prayers for the Royal couple for the new beginning. Wish you a very Happy Wedded life!

Action Poem

Pictures from class II poem recitation competition 2011

the stage is set

The Annual concert 2011

Some of the pictures from the concert- a tribute to the Royal Wedding that was held earlier this month but I couldn’t upload the pictures due to some reasons.

Class PP A dancers all set to rock the stage :)

The rude awakening

 “The 6.8 tremour on Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011 is a reminder that this precious life is unpredictable. For those who have not invested in the next life, it's a warning that the time to prepare for the next life is NOW! There's no opportune time for being a good human being. When one breathes his last, let there be no regret for having squandered thi...” writes one of my teachers on his notes on facebook.

The earthquake again

Just about two years ago, Bhutan suffered a major disaster due to earthquake. The date 21^st September 2009 hasn’t been faded from our memory and now the nightmare seems to be repeating. The only thing different this time is that the epicenter has shifted to Sikkim.

Technology Impact…?

More than two decades ago, when I went to school, my only mode of correspondence was through letters. I wrote letters to friends, parents and siblings. In case of emergencies, we used to send wireless messages which came with cost. Telephones were out of bound for the kids my age and I never really learned to use it until I started working.

The big day draws near…

“You can drag the horse to the river but you cannot force it to drink water”, I heard one of my colleagues remark. I couldn’t help laughing out loud since I was on the verge of similar outburst. I had been teaching dances for the class one students for about a month and they still couldn’t synchronize properly. There were some children were very fast at picking up the steps but the majority of them couldn’t even understand the rhythm and stamp their feet to it. A few days into the selection and I choose twelve of them for the concert and began their practice session.

My Hunt for Aqualite slippers

One evening my children returned home excited. They were happy that their school authority had finally agreed to let them wear slippers during the summer months. It was a relief because my children had been washing their stocking every evening after school. They were briefed that they had to wear aqualite slippers and the school authority would not compromise with any other brand.

My hunt for aqualite slippers began from day one. I started visiting every shoe store in the town in search of the said slippers. Some were too small while the others were too large for my children’s feet. Having visited all the shops within the border, I drove across the border in search of the slippers. Every shop I visit they said, “Aqualite nahin hey” without me having to ask them. It was not only me who was looking for the slippers but all the parents residing here. 

This is life…

Amidst multitasking I try to keep my blog updated which is next to impossible these days. The queue of assignments to be completed on time (six assignments this month…three submitted online and other three yet to go) and the workload in the workplace with some colleagues absent from work is quite nerve wrecking. 

No arms No legs yet No worries…

 I came upon this video by chance and I am really glad that I did. http://www.youtube.co/watch?v=ciYk-UwqFK . I was feeling a kind of low as I normally feel these days due to so many things happening that is beyond my control so I got on the net when my fingers suddenly clicked the YouTube link. And loo! What do I see? A man without arms and legs yet he was doing things that even the normal people fail to do. The video showed him meeting people young and old alike and inspiring everyone with his simple talks. Wow! That was something I needed to watch.

Insuring the future

A decade ago, some personnel from RICBL came to our work place to sell their insurance schemes and a few of my friends joined the scheme but I turned deaf ears due to the bitter experience I had prior to that. My vehicle which was covered under the comprehensive insurance policy got damaged in an accident but when my husband made the claims, he was made to walk from one office to another saying some documents were incomplete and what not before he could finally settle all the claims and get the full amount and repair the vehicle. (Phew!  It took us about nine months)

The live teaching Aids

A few days ago, several people were frequenting my work place and there was a burst of activities. Some forest officials were marking the teak trees for felling around our campus while some people dressed in uniform with NRDCL logo printed on their breast pockets moved around with some Indian labourers in tow. After the marking was over, a few people marched in with their chain saw and started felling the trees behind our academic buildings which disturbed our normal routine due to the noise produced while the machine got operated. The children gave a restless look in the assembly and the classes were no better. The trend continued for two days and on the third day I saw a commotion during the interval. On inquiring I came to know that there was a huge elephant in our campus. 

My ignore button

In our course of lifetime, we come across people with diverse personality traits from varied socio-economic background. Some people are forced upon us as relations making it next to impossible to avoid or neglect them even when we despise them. However, we do have the right to choose our friends and have authority to decide who we want to be with.

Evening outdoors

This is the second evening I am staying outdoor because the rooms become unbearably humid and hot due to power failure. The fans and AC remain idle and the rooms are dark. The candle light adds more humidity to the room and I start sweating. I make a hurried dinner of vegetables and rice which takes not more than half an hour before I escape being roasted in the kitchen. I join the rest of the family outside and then after a few minutes, we take our place for dinner. Dinner’s served and my daughter helps me to put away the dishes before we join the others outside the house.

Unreasonable fare

The advancement that our country has attained technically is beyond my comprehension. The distance that one used to cover in two days at the earliest could now be made within a day and we can call anyone in the world at the click of a button yet the attitude of the people remains same.

Stuck up!

I hate this word “strike”. Every time I plan my journey, I am stranded somewhere in the middle of my journey. It had happened in the past, it is happening now and I know it will happen again yet I cannot come in terms with this word. 

Singing Rivers of Babylon…

The 1^st year and 2^nd year In-service candidates had hosted a farewell dinner for us as was the tradition since the Distance education program was initiated. The usual rounds of drinks were served and a couple of dances and songs by individuals and groups were presented and everyone around was joyous. The table I had taken with my friends was getting noisier every passing minute and we got some nasty glance from the people across our table but my friends were in their seventh heaven and didn’t give a second thought on it.

My ATM experience

I stopped carrying cash because I didn’t feel the need ever since I started using ATM card. Many a times my friends used to complain about the unreliability of the ATM but I always disagreed to them as I never had such experience until a few days ago.

The bumpy ride

The nine hours taxi ride from samdrup Jongkhar to Phuntsholing is something to reckon with and the ride becomes more unpleasant if you are alien to the fellow passengers. So I guess one has nothing to do then to doze off and get your head bumped whenever the wheels hit the potholes. And thank god my head still works after that bumpy ride I took yesterday.

Where have our farms disappeared??

Summer is the time for the students to relax and have fun but it is also time for some students to work on their project. For my daughter, she is to interview a farmer about “the change in farming system” for her geography project. Ever since her exams are over, she has been frantically looking for a farmer to interview for her project but we can hardly see any farms nearby. The nearest farm is more 20 kms away and I have promised her a trip to a neighbouring farm for her group after the LG election.

Educating a Girl Child- a necessity

  The issue of gender equality is a talk of everyday. And its promotion across the globe is a shared concern and repeated discourse in any international forums. It is, in fact, one of the tenets of every nation’s planned developmental projects. The education for female child, for this reason is, what I considered a matter most urgent and needs to be given new meaning.

The last morning before the summer break

I woke up at dawn and woke up my daughter for her revision. She is writing her exams and she still has some more papers to write before her summer holidays unlike the students of my school who must be in deep slumbers unaware of the dawn breaking and their mothers getting ready for the day. 

Victimized

It shocks me to learn how some men fool the innocent village girls. (Sorry if I sound feminist) but I can’t help it here. I was just having a chit chat with my regular group of friend in the staffroom when a colleague joined us. What he shared left us bewildered. Can a man go to that extent to satisfy his lust? (Oops! Sorry for generalizing again) well, without much ado, let me narrate some of the excerpts from his life.

Meche kiras and ghos

You visit any garment shop in Thimphu or elsewhere, I am sure you can find beautifully woven half-kiras neatly piled on the shelves which is usually known as “Meche Kira” (because the clothes are woven by Bodo women of Assam). 

The summer break

With the approach of the summer break, all the people near me are busy planning for their break but not without complain. Unlike the previous years, this year the education ministry issued an office order stating different summer break timing for different Dzongkhags and some of the schools had to bring forward their exams. Some are still wondering on the different summer break timing because the LG election will be held uniformly on the 27^th of this month.

My passtime

I don’t exactly remember when I actually started reading but I guess, it has mostly been influenced by the Irish teacher that we had way back in the mid 80s. She used to be our neighbour and had a nice collection of fairy tales and lady bird books. Her resource room in the school used to be filled with colourful posters and books and she used to read to us. Gradually, I started borrowing her fairy tales and before I knew, I found myself helping her in the resource room and reading more books.

Gossip online

Men often say women gossip a lot. (oops sorry…if I am being bias here) It’s just a cliché. Gossip has come a long way and now in the digital world we can even gossip with strangers on the online forum. For instance, there is always something to reflect upon after reading the post on kuenselonline forum. Normally I don’t visit the forum but sometimes it’s hard to ignore it.

Thank You for the wishes

The birthdays always excites me. It doesn’t matter whether its mine or others but it kind of gives us an excuse to communicate. I usually do not celebrate my birthdays (out of habit) but my daughter never stops surprising me.  She remembers everyone’s birthdays and doesn’t forget to wish them at every opportunity. :)

Still many more…

A friend once asked, “Where are you planning to construct your house?” I stared at her baffled since I did not know what she was talking about. It was only after some queries that I came to know she was planning to construct a house after having bought a plot of land. But for me, a house was not in the scene for some years. When I said so to my friend, she lectured me on giving a second thought on she said and reminded me that it was time for me to think about myself and my family. Hmm…now, that made me think…” Am I doing the right thing?”

Life’s Uncertainty

“When youth grows pale, and spectre-thin, and dies

Where but to think to be full of sorrow

And leaden-eyed despairs”

 (an extract from the poem Ode to a nightingale) 

Grasshopper and money…?

These days we can find lots of grasshoppers around our resident especially in the evening. Grasshoppers vary in size and colours and sometimes they even find their way into my kitchen which is very annoying.

My association with Tom and Jerry

Every time I enter my kitchen, I am greeted by a huge faded sticker of Jerry with his tongue sticking out and his hands on his ears like he is jeering at me just like he does to Tom in the cartoon series.  I cannot really recollect how it found its place on my refrigerator’s door but it always brings smile on my lips whenever I open and close the kitchen door. The sticker looks faded now but it never fails to bring smile on my lips even today. Sometimes I name my children Tom and Jerry because of the nuisance they make out of nothing just to gain my attention.

Random truth

My nine year old son reads and collects twinkle comics and ever since we had been transferred here, he had been buying a copy each from the only shop that sells comics every time we go for an evening stroll to the shop. I too flip through some copies sometimes when I don’t have any task at hand. While flipping through a copy, I came across a story about a Pundit (Hindu scholar) who found a bird’s feather stuck on his teeth while eating a meal. Now the Pundits are supposed to be a vegetarian and he didn’t tell about the incident to anyone at first. Later he disclosed it to his wife who in turn told her friends about the incident and the story passed through many mouths with various additions. The feather became wings, the wings became a bird and the bird became a flock of birds that flew out of the pundit’s mouth. Imagine the plight of the Pundit when he found his neighbours banging his front door demanding to see the nest of the birds in his mouth.

MY HEART REJOICES

The cell buzzed as I was coming out of the class. I looked at the number and found that the caller was a friend. She doesn’t usually call me without any reason so I picked up the phone and asked her the reason. She shouted excitedly “Our King is getting married”. “Hey, hey, cool down and tell me the whole story” I asked and she went into details about the announcement made by His Majesty at the end of the inaugural address at the seventh session of Parliament in the morning of 20^th May (yesterday) in Thimphu.

Time to buckle up!

The first half of the academic session is almost drawing an end and we are urging our students to keep revising their lesson because no matter what talents they have, at the end it is their academic marks that counts. The rescheduling of LG elections had even brought the exams closer. Now the timetable is out and it’s time to get to the books. As my students get serious with their books I too try to refer some notes because I too have my share of exams.

The wrong number

The cell phone ringing near my bed woke me from the deep slumber. I put on the light to see the time. The clock on the wall read 11.15pm. Picking up the phone, I responded and came to know that the caller was a woman. She didn't wait to know who was receiving her call and went on with her babble for a few minutes. Hearing her babble in Sharchop, I could make out that she was from some rural area in the east. I couldn't cut off the phone and could speak since she didn't give me a chance to do so. She called me "nimin" (sister) and went on with her sad tale. After sometime, I asked her where she was calling from and she responded saying that she was calling from home. I had to interrupt her by saying that she was talking to the wrong person but she said that the number belonged to her sister. I politely asked her to check the number again and switched off the cell . I didn't want to get anymore midnight calls from some unknown number.

Her ever-changing hobbies

My children are growing and their interests seem to change every few months like the change of seasons. “What is the mother supposed to do?” is the question that I almost always ask myself. For instant, at this time last year, my twelve year daughter seemed like a voracious reader when she finished the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer in a month. Even I took a little longer time to finish the books. After that she was keen into music and every time I allowed her access to the net, she was busy downloading the songs and learning lyrics.

Celebrating Teacher’s day!

With abating breath we had waited for the day, the day dedicated to the teacher’s of Bhutan. Many text messages and calls were exchanged and I felt elated since it was our day, the day to reflect on our achievements and failures and to rededicate ourselves to serve our students better.

Being a teacher

As the teacher’s day draw close, my cell rings continuously with my friends and students calling me to wish for the day. Some text messages and some send mails.

Getting rid of my addiction

There was a time when I could not stay an hour without a cigarette. When I think back to those time, I still wonder how I over came that urge and came out clean. I picked up the habit during my initial year in the service. Placed away in the wilderness where I didn’t know even a single soul during my first few weeks lead me to a shop which sold cigarettes (cigarette was freely available in every shop those days) and I tried my first piece a few days after my arrival in the place. A piece of drag led to another and before long I was consuming about 3 packets of wills in a day! Without a female companion, I had nothing to do then to listen to my small portable radio and smoke after the work hours.

Restlessness…

I had been home for some months but I am restless. Something is amiss. I know what it is …a root to belong to… I am surrounded by my friends and families yet I feel so alone. My craving for something unknown creates emptiness in my heart that drains me of any will to acknowledge the beauty of the surrounding. I try to seek help for people near and far but nothing fills the void in my heart. I sit quietly trying to harness my thought that travels back to the time I was in university not so far in the past.

Do we really have freedom?

A friend called last Saturday evening and asked whether we had a woman’s association. I was bewildered by her question and asked her the reason for the query.  Her response was, they had formed a Women’s association in the Dungkhag where she worked and by default every working women became the member whether they liked it or not. Hearing her blurt out information, I couldn’t help chuckling because she said that she had to attend a meeting the following Sunday and by her sound she definitely wasn’t for it. 

When strangers becomes friends

A friend request on face book is all it takes to make a friend out of a stranger in this digital world. A few years ago such thing was unheard of but now everything is possible.

Greeting the first Rainfall

The gusty wind had been speeding up for the past several days bringing relief to the mounting temperature but the roads looked dusty and the pavement were very dry yearning for a little freshness that comes only with the rain. I silently prayed for the rain since the little flowers blooming in my garden gave dull withered look. 

 

Glimpses of Scout camp 2011

The mock Drill

The school announced that we would be having a mock drill on disaster management today in the morning assembly. We eagerly listened as the coordinator  outlined procedures for the drill. We went back to the class and instructed the students on the same so that things would go smoothly during the drill which was scheduled after lunch.

Multitasking

Every day I try to battle my day with a smile on my face. Multitasking is something that needs thorough planning but I never learned to plan things in my life. I took the things as it came- one at a time, I am still doing that and I think I am good at what I do. I am a mother, wife, a teacher and a driver and I assume many role as and when needed :P

The camp experience

My principal handed me an office order stating that I was to attend a scout camp for four days away in the wilderness… I say wilderness because the camp was away from town where I had never been before though it was just about 20 kms from my place. Reading the order I realized that I had just about a few days to mentally prepare myself for the camp. I called the other colleagues mentioned in the letter and found out that we had to report to the Dzongkhag office in about three days time ( two days prior to the camp for planning). What the heck! My first reaction was to shout “to the hell with the camp in the middle of the academic session” and cancel my name from the list with a few calls but my friends suggested against it and I found myself sitting in the Dzongkhag office on the set date with the other participants cracking my brains out with the planning given the short period of time. Two days into the planning and preparation and on the third day I was driving through the dusty bumpy road into the wilderness. 

Frustrations!

Frustrations! Frustrations! You cannot help it when you are sand-witched between two bosses.

After rushing through the busy morning hours, I finally drop my children at school and proceed to my work place. I take a look on my watch as I park my car. Yes! I was on time, just as always. The very important value that my parents taught. My father used to say “time is like a river, ever flowing. One need to keep a pace with it in order to make things happen”.

The mail

On the evening of 11^th March 2011, I sat stunned as I watched the news on TV about the earthquake of 9.0 RC hitting the eastern shores of Japan. The news showed the horrifying footage of the things happening at the other end of the world - the world that held my other family; the family I had known for a brief period while I was visiting the place.

My guests

Two ladies came to occupy my cottage for more than two months. I say my cottage because, the cottage came with the bungalow allotted to my husband and we had been occupant of the same for some time now. The guest came to live at our place because they happen to be relative of my husband’s friend. Initially they said that they would be staying for a month and we agreed.

Sad movies …

I first saw the book “P.S. I love you by Cecelia Ahern” when I was visiting Thimphu a few weeks ago. The friend to whom the book belonged asked me whether I wanted to read to which I declined the offer because I hadn’t planned to stay for long in Thimphu and I was worried about not completing the book. Thus I declined. My stay in Thimphu extended beyond what I had planned and I almost called my friend to ask for the book but then I had other errand and got busy and completely forgot about the book until last week.

The New Look

The road I had driven for the past one year looked suddenly different when I drove to work this morning. At first I thought I was seeing things as I was preoccupied with some things related to work because tomorrow my students will be back to school and I had so many things to do to make everything ready when they arrived. But No! I was not dreaming. Something really was different. The road which usually gave me jerk as I drove was very smooth this morning. I slowed my car and drove slowly taking in everything. Over the weekend, I could see that the road had been repaired and the huge boulders which usually hindered while driving had been displaced at the side of the road. Wow! The visit of the VIPs definitely had some positive impact.

My observation II

The chill wind hit me as soon as I got off the bus. I tried to pull my scarf closer to avoid the wind and at the same time looking for my niece. She was to pick me up from the bus stand. I scanned the crowd and finally spotted her looking frantically, searching for me. Yes! She was there. I waved and she saw me and came towards me and towed me into a waiting taxi.

My Observation

I hadn’t planned to go to Thimphu initially but since I was standard in Phuntsholing for a countless days due to Assam and Bengal strike, I decided to finally pay visit to the capital city. My friends were worried because they knew that I hadn’t been to Thimphu in winter and they thought I wouldn’t be able to stand the cold weather during the peak winter season. I nearly changed my mind twice but then I thought that if I went back to my words I would not be able to make the visit in the near future. So finally I decided to g ahead with my plan and got a bus ticket to Thimphu. After spending three days in Phuntsholing, I finally boarded my bus to Thimphu. I made sure that I had some warm clothes before I boarded the bus and purchased an extra jacket.

Watching autumn in my heart

I and my friend (roommate) decided to watch the Korean movie (serial) “ Autumn in my heart”. It was not planned initially because both of us had been very busy with the preparation of group presentation. We worked through Saturday and spent almost half of Sunday on it. (Both of us were working separately since we were in different group) My group members (male) didn’t show their face during the entire preparation time because they said they had other errand. After spending about half of Sunday in the room, we decided to go to the market. We strolled the town, buying nothing of importance. After lunching out, we came back and then sat down to watch the movie.

On a forced diet

We come back from our session in the evening and get busy with the preparation of next day's presentation. I rigorously look for some references in the library and browse the net. The time flies by and we don’t even realize that it’s past the dinner time. Damn! We missed the dinner again. This is the 6^th night that we had been here and we never saw the dining hall in the mornings and evenings and the reason we gave was we were too busy.  It’s not that we are so engrossed with the preparation for preparation and other assignments but engaged mostly in the silly tit bits of our life.

Away from home

Being away from home is like a hell but being away during losar is unthinkable. On the eve of losar, my cell rang a numerous times and I got many wishes from family, friends and other well wishers but all those wishes were wasted on me because my only wish was to be with my family on that day which I could not. Sometimes I wish that I had been wise enough not to join this course because though the duration is not very long its seems like ages since I have been here but when I counted the days, I realized that it’s just  three days since I had come here.

Charged Nu.2 extra

I bought ticket for the public transport enroute to samtse. I was travelling with my two friends to attend the course. We paid Nu. 38 each for the tickets and got onto the bus. The bus was not very crowded when we boarded from the bus stand. I was squeezed between my two friends.  As soon as the bus crossed the Indo-Bhutan boarder, there was a crowd of passenger waiting to board the bus. The conductor started shoving in all the extra passengers. The people started pouring in and the bus got more crowded and there was not a single space to place a foot yet the people kept on boarding. After about five minutes the bus started moving. By then the people sitting on their respective seats were also complaining about the comfortableness of the ride.