The ground is littered
with promises, white petals
ripen to red fruit
This Sunday, I walked one of my favorite trails, towards the
B-mobile tower. I never actually go to the tower, which crowns the very top of
a prominent hill. Instead, I sit under a tall tree near the top (tower
purposely obscured from view) and watch the hawks, ravens, and eagles riding
the wind, and regard the looming mountain behind Chazam. This time, the walk
was speckled with the white flowers of wild strawberries. Strawberries seem like
a rarity in the Midwest compared with the amount of ground they cover here. I
am anticipating the taste of ripe berries…
It is a busy time at school. Last week we had several
special days in a row.
First, the Je Khenpo passed by on Monday. We got the message
during our 3rd period. The students promptly readied themselves with
rachu and kabney (the scarves that complete the national dress of Bhutan and
are required for prayer and official occasions), and we hurried to the road.
We, and most of Rukubji, ended up waiting quite a while for the car carrying
Bhutan’s head lama. When the car did pass, we all bowed and received a drive by
blessing on the head. As soon as we returned to school, a student remarked that
there were bicyclists on the road (a rare sight). It turns out that the 5th
King was in the peleton. This time we could not have made it to the road in
time to wave the King on, so we stood on the football field, squinting at the
road.
As if this excitement wasn’t enough, as I took my mini-marathon
training group for our evening jog towards Chazam (which is their jog home), a
motorcade bearing the Queen passed us. The students recognized her instantly
and shrieked with excitement, exclaiming about her beauty. Then, not even 5
minutes later, a large crew of motorcyclists, which could only be described as the “Bhutanese
Hell’s Angels”, droned past. A few turned back and stopped to make conversation
with us (which happens to me occasionally on the road, since there are few
non-Bhutanese people living out in the villages, so people are naturally
curious). It was the most exciting day this stretch of road has seen in a
while.
That night, I ate dinner at the hotel with Tshering’s older
sister Tshering Lhamo and her young aunt Zam. We went for a stroll and ended
the night watching sappy Japanese movies. Quite the girl’s night!
The next day was Zhabdrung Kuchoe. This day commemorates the
death of Zhabdrung Nawang Namgyal who came to Bhutan in the 1600s and built the
first Dzong (fortess) at Semtokha (though the Dzong he is famous for is the
Punakha Dzong).
I left early from Chazam to meet two of my students who had
requested I walk with them to Chendibji, where there are 3 large chortens built
in different styles. We left with zip in our step, unaware of the journey that
lay ahead. I think the girls greatly underestimated the distance we’d walk that
day, as they carried no water or food in their bag. Having been on adventures
to “not far” places with students before (see April Fool’s walk post), I
carried a bottle of water and money for snacks along the way. After an hour and
a half of walking and talking (these two are quite shy, so I asked hundreds of
questions to keep the conversation rolling), we saw a sign that reported:
Chendibji 3Km. We stopped at a tiny bamboo-built shop and I bought the girls
some juice to keep their energy up, though being overly polite, they almost
refused to drink it. Finally, we spotted the spire of the Nepalese style
chorten. Once there, we found no festivities for the holiday, so we walked
around the chortens 3 times and rested on the grass. Since this sight is also
on the lateral road, there were a few tourists who stopped to talk to us. If I
am an oddity in the countryside of Bhutan, I become even more of a curiosity
when I wear the national dress, which we three were wearing in case there was
something going on for the holiday. After the tourists took leave in their
vehicle, we set off meandering along the road, stopping for snacks to keep ourselves going as it was lunchtime by now. Had I
known, I would have advised packing a picnic lunch. Regardless of fatigue or
hunger, it was a beautiful day. The sun was out warming our skin and the green
leaves, the river accompanied us with its talkative current. I felt entirely at
peace walking along, but the girls began to feel the distance in their shorter,
less trained legs. We once again reached the curve in the road that signifies a
turn off into the thicket where pedestrians can take a shortcut across the river,
straight uphill to the other side of the road (the road basically folds at Chazam, so we cut off about 3 km by taking the shortcut). After an intense climb upwards,
the girls collapsed on the side of the road—laughing with exhaustion. We strolled the 2 km left
back to Rukubji singing songs, calculating our mileage, and congratulating
ourselves on our strength. We walked a total of 20 Km that day! This is not an
incredible feat for me (try skiing 50km…), but for these two girls it was a
huge accomplishment. I am proud they stuck with it and didn’t stick their
thumbs out for a ride.
The next day was Teacher’s Day, which I’ve never celebrated.
This year, the day was made even more special as 2012 marks the 100-year anniversary
of education in Bhutan. It is also the 3rd King’s Birthday, and he
is considered the father of education here.
That morning, I dressed in my hand-woven kira and came to school to see
what the day would bring. I was instructed to sit in the front with the other
five teachers and the two Non-Formal Education (NFE) teachers. Parents and
student filled out multi-purpose hall. The principal made a speech, then asked
me to speak! I simply told the
gathering that this was the first time I had celebrated Teacher’s Day in my 3
years of teaching, and that it was quite an honor. I also thanked the students
for being the reason I teach. Without students, there are no teachers. I felt a
great sense of pride for teaching in that moment, looking at the faces of the
150 students who are no longer strangers to me. Each one has become etched into
my heart. Looking at them, I could feel their gratitude beaming back. To express that gratitude, the
students filed into a line and brought us cards and gifts. Then the cultural program
kicked off with the principal announcing that all the lady teachers would perform a dance to start the show. News to me! I got on stage with Dema, Kuenzang, and Deki (who is a fantastic dancer), and did a traditional
Bhutanese dance in a circle that was pretty simple, though I still found myself
fumbling along. The students put on quite the show with choreographed dances, skits, and singing. The NFE students also danced and sang traditional songs. We got plenty of
tea, zow (puffed rice), and cookies served to us the whole while. When the show
was finished, we departed full of tea and in good spirits.
Education is highly valued here, and the celebration of
teachers and education on a national scale proves this. The students, even if
they are occasionally lax in their work ethic, know the value of education and
constantly thank me for teaching them. The contrast between students’ general
attitude towards education here and that of my students in the US
is great. Both groups of students face intense difficulties in their lives, though
rural and urban problems are quite different. Yet the difficulty the students here face draws them to appreciate education, not to take it for granted. This is
not to say that all my US students were ungrateful, but I don’t think most of
them grasped the value of what they were experiencing. Here, teaching with
chalk, board, books, and not much else, wondering if I am at all
effective at my job, it is humbling to see the students’ gratitude. Imagine if
they got to experience a US-style classroom with all its resources (and heat!).
As with the wild strawberries, though we could easily forget what a special happening they are, so we should realize what a gift education is. And like those blossoms, the promise of education lies in wait for student and teacher to transform and ripen it.
*Important Side Note: I got to attend the National Book Fair in Wangdue with the Principal on Friday. We picked out 21,000 nu of new books for the school library. Wish for new books granted!
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