Chauturali: Week 2

Once I was settled in I got a wonderful little routine to my time in Chauturali. "Sleeping in" (aka laying in bed, awake, avoid butter tea....YUCK!) I put this in quote because insomnia has plague me pretty much the entire time I have been in Nepal. I think this is because I am almost 12 hours difference from home, and like people who work nights, I will never sleep well at night because it is daytime in the States. I would get up read and journal, wash up in a small dish of water, eat breakfast and head to the clinic. This was all done at a super slow leisurely pace...I loved it, so different from the States where everything is about time and hurry hurry hurry.
My second week at the clinic wasn't quite as exciting as my first, mainly because Gyami and Jeeven (the health post staff) had to do end of the month paper work. YES! In Nepal they just started a new month, and it is also year 2066...ummm yeah. Nepal is 57 years ahead of the States, that is obviously just a figure, because they are behind in so many things. Evidently, Nepal runs off a totally different calendar and the new year starts in the middle of April, who knew? My final week at clinic I dressed some interesting wounds, adminstered some Depo shots, and ran medications out to patients in the waiting area (which was actually outside the clinic, the Nepali love the sunshine).
Aside from the clinic being alittle boring my last week, I adventured around Chauturali...visiting people's fields and their water buffalo. One evening I walked to the school and watched the sunset from the rooftop of the school, it was absolutely beautiful. There were two almost magical rainstorms while I was in Chauturali, with giant raindrops that made a deafening music against the tin roof as thunder rolled in the background. I hung out with my host family, communicating with friendly hugs and some kind of secret sign language. Ashik and Nabin kept me entertained with homework questions and draws of their national flowers and precise pictures of their future homes. This boys were one of the highlights to my time in Chauturali, I can still see Ashik peeking his head in my doorway and giving my a shit-eating grin when I catch him checking in on me. Ah-ma was another never ending source of endearment for me, she would just sit next to me while I was reading and rest her head on my shoulder or her hand on my knee. Another thing that I LOVED about ah-ma was she smoked this HUGE pipe, just imagine alittle old Nepali lady with a giant wooden pipe, it still makes me giggle thinking about it.
Now back in the capital I find myself missing little things about Chauturali, like the sweet smell of animals, hay and the spices they cook with. Or hearing one of the ladies of the house sift rice on these HUGE woven platters, it makes it almost music sound. Or waking up to Ah-ma singing the morning Hindu prayers, hearing her voice weave in and out the the rooms of the house as she blesses various places, plants and animals. Or the sound of crickets coming out at night, and the voices of the boys chatting away in Nepali, usually heatedly over their homework. These are all wonderful things that blessed my time in Chauturali, I feel so grateful for toughin out those first few difficult days to walk away with these memories which will last a lifetime.