I knew when I went on this last placement that it was going to be pivotal, but I didn't know when I arrived in Charikot two weeks ago how these 31 boys (ages 5-18) were going to change my life.
I arrived in Charikot at Gaurishankar Orphanage on May 25th. My dearest Shivani (my Nepali friend) took the bus with me and spent my first night there with me. The morning of her departure I met Ramchandra and he showed me the grounds and explained the different buildings to me. His shy, sweetness is one of the characteristic that made me find him immediately endearing. That first day, after the boys went off to school I got acclimated and spoke with Om about how the orphanage was run and such.
The next several days followed with particular pattern, got up, dressed and had tea. Breakfast with Om (the man who runs the orphanage), Gita (Om's wife), and Rajendra (the computer teacher)...then saw the boys off to school. While the boys were at school I helped with washing, preparing vegetables (NO cooking!) and did some much needed mending on the younger boy's clothes.
The 27th was Lord Buddha's Birthday, which meant (yay!) no school. With all the boys home I got a really good chance to start to get to know them. At this point I only knew two or three names, but within the next 4 days or so I would have all 31 names down. The afternoon of the 27th sticks out in my memory, because I joined the boys on a visit to the "village" (which is a remote farming area just below the orphanage). This is when I met and instantly loved Birjung! His smile and his charisma, and his talking made us close from the get go. He showed me all the different sights, pointing out rivers, mountains, and different villages. His English and his wealth of knowledge further impressed me.
The following Sunday and Monday, I went into Charikot with the boys to assist the principal of Gaurishankar English Boarding School (the youngest boy's school) prepare information in English for his website. On Monday, Surya (the principal) took me on a bike ride to neighboring Dolkah to show me his house and facilities for a possible teaching volunteer. He tried pretty persistently to get me to teach at his school, but I insisted that I was really content helping at the orphanage and spending time with the boys.
Over the next week, nothing exciting really happened. Which was the perfect environment for me to get to know the boys. I did not get to know all the boys that well, some of the oldest boys (in class 10) have a very intense school schedule which doesn't permit much time for chatting with some random Westerner. Also there were "middle aged" boys who English wasn't really good enough to talk to me, but they had enough inhibitions to keep from just goofing and joking around with me. My star "middle aged" boy was Kal, he was the first one of that group to introduce himself and his forward manner made up for his (sometimes) hard to understand English. There were only a handful of the boys who did not really get a special bond with me, all of the others I got to know quite well in two weeks at Gaurishankar....this made it nearly impossible to leave today. Each one of these boys has a special, unique, personality that combines all of the characteristics I love most about Nepali people just with a different composition in each boy. These boys were all kind (Krishna,always with a sweet smile on his face), gentle (Gokul, always caring for his little woman Ojashbi), more than hospitable (Abhishek, peeking into my room to make sure I am comfortable), funny loving (Govinda, arm wrestling and telling jokes), and welcoming (Lalit, always there with a hug and a smile). There was never any judgment and rarely a moment of hesitation when getting to know me. Sitting here writing this I can see each one of their faces and think of how we had a connection or bonded over something.
I can't begin to express how blessed I feel to have met not only the boys, but there caregivers Om and Gita along with the three dais who helped cook and clean. Om and Gita are a phenomenal couple, who have had the strength and wisdom to let these boys grow up inspired and educated. Om would always joke with me that the boys spoke better English than he did...don't tell him, but some of the boys did :). The dais (brothers) who helped cook and clean for the boys, did not speak English, but that did not stop us from finding creative ways to speak to each other (with smiles and silent "namaste") when there wasn't a converter (aka translator) to be found.
The group of people that I spent the last two weeks with redefined for me the meaning of family. If you were to ask any of the boys they would tell you that they see Om as a father and every other boy as one of their brothers. Many of them told me that even if they have to get their final education in Kathmandu, that they will come back to Charikot because this is where their family is. Some of these boys are true orphans (meaning both parents are dead), but many of them are fatality of second marriage orphans. In Nepal when a woman loses her husband and she has small children, if she decides to re-marry her new husband may ask her to abandon her children from her previous marriage. This is custom is commonly accepted in Nepal, and many of the boys at the orphanage are second marriage orphans. Even with this heavy burdens to bear from difficult backgrounds, it is rare to see them without a smile on their face and affectionate hug or snuggle to dole out.
As Birjung walked me to the bus park this morning, a million memories were running through my mind and I was desperately trying to hang on to each one. Birjung in his usual way, was very calm cool and collected...helped me get my bus ticket and find my seat on the bus. He chatted easily with me about school, when/where the bus would stop for lunch, and what music I should listen to on my ride. I think he was trying to put off he inevitable fact that he was going to have to leave me. Eventually we hugged, both near tears...he said he HAD to get to school and off he went. I sat on the bus trying not to cry waiting for the bus to leave for Kathmandu (which wasn't suppose to be for another 15 minutes) when all the sudden Govinda's face with his goofy crooked smile pops up in my window. I couldn't help but laugh! He chatted with me, told me jokes and was just his goofy little self...he talks with his hands so to watch him tell jokes or stories he is VERY animated. He kept me preoccupied until the bus took off....leaning out the window, I could see Govinda and Birjung standing in the street waving until I was out of sight. That is memory I do not want to forget.
As I conclude this entry, I feel at peace leaving the boys today only because I know I will return and see them again. When you invest in people so special and they return that investment with so much love and affection, how can you not feel like you have left a little part of yourself with them. I feel like when I left Gaurishankar today I left a little piece of my heart with each one of the boys. Only will I really feel that loved when we are all together again.
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