Better Out than Bang

I was writing a serious article for my blog few minutes back. I was struck with a paragraph. Nothing, nothing came out of me even after about an hour of thinking. I couldn't ooze out my ideas through the pen on the paper. I was really struck.
     I took out my camera and went out to refresh myself. I went anticlockwise my residence with my eyes in the trees anticipating a bird or two. No birds. But a squirrel captivated my eyes for about fuve minutes. I froze my moment to capture the squirrel's moment. With a small guava in its mouth, the squirrel ran the tree beside the waste pit. As I expected, it stopped on a branch to nibble its hunt. It was perfect view for me to capture its view till the guava fell down unfortunately. Then it ran away leaping from tree to tree and vanished into thick woods below my residence.
     I walked further following the drain below the playground. The group of children led by sir Dendup and Ms Kezang did exceptional job in clearing the drain blocked by sands and thick bushes. They dug out the mud and cleared the bushes. They too might have released extra energy in doing that job as equally as those involved in draining out the puddle behind the academic block.
     An iguana crawling in the drain took me further. The iguana stopped when I stopped. And yet another moment for me to froze to take the reptile's moment. It rested perfectly against brown background of soil. A perfect camouflage, I mumbled. It crawled fast at the sound of my doorstep and vanished into the bushes. The grasshoppers hopped and crickets creaked as I moved further.
      After few minutes of scanning the nature around, Dharangang River rushing fast, crickets creaking, butterflies fluttering... I turned back to my residence hoping that I would would be able to clear the boulders blocking the flow of my writing which I considered carried a serous note.
     Sometimes it is better to go out into the nature and come back refreshed with her power when struck in the middle of any important assignment. Better go out than banging our head on the desk when I am short of ideas.  

Our Weekend Fight

According to some media reports, the incessant rain the nation received for more than a week had been worse since 2007. Across the nation, the incessant downpour wreaked havoc especially in they're really southern regions. Many roads and bridges were reported to be damaged. Sarpang town was hit worse with flood water entering the town. Even His Majesty the King paid his royal visit to investigate the flooded places and provided consolation and hope to those hit worse in Sarpang Dzongkhag. The people realized the royal concern with His majesty visiting the affected places such as Doti River and Amochu in Phuntsholing. The Dantak workers and army personals deployed by HM felt motivated to speed up their work of constructing bailey bridge at Kamji to connect Phuntsholing-Thimphu highway. With Phuntsholing-Thimphu highway disconnected for about a week, some imported vegetables and things were reported ‘becoming expensive’ in Thimphu. I have read about some volunteers ferrying oxygen cylinders on their shoulders at the Kamji block feeling the pains of those patients at National Referral Hospital in Thimphu. Similar disasters were felt all across the nation.
     In the school we felt lucky for no report of any disaster in the community although we received similar torrential downpours that other places received. The children were bombarded with their safety taking into account of the probable disasters accompanying peak monsoon. We could carry out our classes without having to brave any sort of disasters. However, we experienced difficulty in commuting from one place to another with mud splattering our cloths and legs. We dearly longed for internal footpaths to come up in near future. Unlike other officers, teachers have to move from class to class and hence without concrete footpaths, it is difficult for us to maintain our cleanliness. Finally we had to resort to slippers which proved no better than shoes. And gumboots would have been better if we were allowed by our official etiquette although they are very similar in design of our ceremonial boots ‘tshoglhams’. During the last Lower Kheng principals Meet, we were advised not to allow even trainers and sneakers during office hours. Sometimes when disasters wreak havoc, it is difficult to comply by our official etiquette. May be bare foot would be more safe solution to prevent our shoes from splattering mud time and again without going against our official etiquette.
     The puddle formed behind the new academic block has been concern for us. We are concerned that the puddle would weaken the foundation of the building and cause a major disaster in the future. So for that today we were involved in drying the puddle by taking out the water through drains. Last year sir karma had initiated to get rid of the puddle with the help of his club’s children. However the recent incessant rain formed the puddle again, perhaps bigger than last year’s. we dug gravel sand brought by the water from the road and tried to level the ground. As our work progressed, we discovered a couple of water streaming out at a side of the ground. we thought that they were the waters of our kitchen and tap that had been sipped into the ground. but sir Karma heard that the water has been there naturally since long time back. Later an elderly woman who was passing by confirmed that the water occurs naturally in 5th and 6th month every year. We had to resort to meander the water towards the road to avoid future disaster by any means. The teachers and bigger boys dug the gravel sands and put them in sacks. Smaller children picked up the sacks and filled the puddle. But we couldn’t fill the puddle and level the ground despite our restless effort of about 1 and half hours in the sun. We could drain out only some water through high drains we dug and lower a bit of volume of water in the puddle. In the end we were all plastered with mud and dirt. The group which were deployed in clearing the drain below our playground which was built as sort of mitigation work to avoid landslide were tried equally. The children were advised to bathe, wash their clothes and change the dress right away. After that we refreshed ourselves with cool mango and orange juice followed by a movie as promised before the commencement of our work.
     I am very happy for the support and effort my team have for me in any kind of work I dream for the school. I pray for them to be blessed more than the sweats they shed for the wellbeing of the children.

NFE Opening Session at Nganglatrong

On Monday this week I had an opportunity to visit Nganglatrong NFE Center for the opening session for the new learners. Of the nine learners registered through the Tshogpa last spring, six were present at the inauguration. As the temporary head of the school, it is one of my responsibilities to look after the motion of the center. And I was invited by the instructor Leki as an key person to preside over the opening session coupled with a meeting.
     It was at the peak of the heavy downpour our nation was braving. Everything was totally wet and there seemed disasters lurking around in every twist and turn of our ascend up the Nganglatrong path. Luckily Acho Kencho, our school cook, had knife that he cleared the path that had been blocked completely by a fallen tree at one point. The gravelled soil couldn't hold the tree longer. Even a fall of branch would be a disaster through a thick forest. So no time to rest , enjoy nature and ascend with ease. Hurriedly we reached the road without minding the elastic leeches. At the shop over a packet of juice, I pinched out about five leeches from inside my socks. The rain was still dropping. Sir Dendup and Miss Kezang who were on their journey to PD workshop at Zhemgang were struck there following the advice of Tshogpa regarding the swollen stream near Dongdor. I already reminded them not to push their journey hard that I would request the DEOs to adjust them in the next group. So understandingly DEO Karma looked into our matter.
     I suggested them to join me and the cook to the opening session of the NFE for the new learners. Together under the dome of our umbrellas, we went towards the center, rain pattering and our feet sloshing.
     We were warmly welcomed by the instructor, Tshogpa and the learners in Tshogpa's residence. Tea and bangchang came first followed by snacks and boiled eggs. As we talk about the worsening weather over the tea and chang, the learners joined us sitting face to face with us. The instructor formally welcomed me, my team and others for the opening ceremony. In his welcome note he mentioned that he was very happy with our presence to grace the ceremony. Then it was my turn to deliver few words about the importance of education in our lives. It was indeed a platform for me to inspire, motivate and convince a group of people in the community apart from my students. I highlighted the power of education in this fast challenging and changing world. There are chances that other might deceive you while making agreement be it over loan or dispute if you don't know how to read, I reinforced the power of being able to read. Then the advantage to read prayer books and signboard was another benefit the education would endow them. The other power of education, of course the most practical and emerging cream of education I had shared was the advantage to use the smart phones to their fullest once our language got programmed on phones like in Japen, China and Korea.(hopefully our language would develop power to get progrmmed on electronics as one of the language options) I also shared them about the possibility of coming of CLC(Community Learning Centre) and the advantage they would have as literate in grabbing the life skill education CLCs would empower them. Lastly I restated them to complete the course without fail realizing the values and skills they would learn in NFE's purpose to make them literate to read fluently and write legibly.
     Then forming of committee, setting of norms and timings poured in. The program ended with lunch arranged by the instructor.
     With the hope that the program would go smoothly till the end we journeyed back to the school with the rain still showering and mist still hanging heavily around. We had to rush with our senses alert through the leech infested forest.