Dashain 2064 in my eyes-The Kathmandu Post

Dashain 2064 in my eyes

                         -Moheindu Amiran Chemjong

Last year, the day of tika had been another ordinary day in my life. I had had a regular working day. I clearly remember that I had gone to Scarborough beach for a walk in the evening like in most evenings as usual. I had had a frozen Indian meal for dinner like on most days. But my mobile had been ringing continuously because my parents, cousins and relatives had been calling me to give me greetings of Dashain and blessings. Our conversations had been sentimental with outpourings of me being missed on the special day. My heart had been very heavy that day, evening and night! Due to my studies, I hadn’t had the opportunity to be home for Dashain and therefore, this year, this Dashain was very special to me. Besides the privilege and honor of being with my family and relatives, this year’s Dashain also showed me some very interesting facades. I felt that this was almost like catching up on what I had missed out the past three years and hence I owe these sweet and sour truths of Kathmandu for making my Dashain 2064 extra special!

The one thing which was quite noticeable was the petrol hike, the petrol line! Dashain came and has almost gone away but the hype of petrol just has not come to an end yet. This was indeed a big time because many people who had to go and receive tika had to break and bend their rules. Some had to get lifts and some decided to go and receive tika at many places on the same day if the houses were on the same route. This year we had some people in the house to receive tika but it was rather funny because they wanted short cut blessings for their taxis would be waiting outside. Because of limited petrol and diesel, some decided to leave their cars home and resorted to taxis. Likewise, there was another party who wanted to rush back home to sleep in early for they had to get up and be ready to queue up in the petrol lines by four am the next morning! I heard many complaints about the petrol shortage and many stories of the petrol lines. I learnt that there are lots of other people like myself whose socializing and interesting past times have decreased because of this crisis!

Passing by the roads, a close look at the petrol lines this time gave another surge of ideas Since the lines were long and the uncertainty about getting petrol seemed to be high, I thought that some NGOs and INGOs could use this time and grab the attention of the people waiting in the line to disseminate important bits of information or even distribute their pamplets! At a time when barbequed sausages have hit many roads of the Kathmandu valley, the petrol lines could be some idea to expand the business. Or, even ice-cream or take-away tea or coffee! A lot of people seemed busy adjusting their hair, getting rid of blackheads and doing their eyebrows. You know what, the beauty business could just start amongst these lines. Different people in the lines seemed to be absorbed in different thoughts, wore different expressions and seemed to be having different types of conversations while waiting. It seems to be that this is a big time waster and I suggested my friend a book or two. It was then that he narrated the story of how his headlight disappeared when he had been too busy absorbed in some newspaper while waiting at the queue!

Like in the past years, the season was at her very best during this festive season. There is the sweet autumn breeze, the mellow sunshine, the beautiful colours of marigold and the makhmali flowers, the heavenly colours of the mustard in the fields and the magnificent smell of guavas in the air! My heart was profoundly happy and I felt a sense of pride and self-satisfaction  filled my heart and I thought  how lucky I am to be born a Nepali and belong to my motherland Nepal where culture and heritage flourish in spite of what Nepal has been undergoing in the past years.

At the Dashain 2064 gatherings and parties, the music sounded very cool and modern! All my younger and dance-loving loved ones sway their bodies to these numbers, I thought that they must be dancing to some English or Hindi hip hop or rap numbers but on closer listening, I was absolutely amused that these ultra modern numbers, too carried the Nepali spirit for in spite of the rap, they were all remixed Nepali songs- By road ko batoma, Resham firiri, Rato ra chandra surya!

This was quite a sentimental Dashain too! With blessings and dakshina, my elder ones gathered tears in their eyes. They all told me that they are proud of me and especially proud of my decision to come back to Nepal. With their blessings, my Nepali heart was filled with immense love, pride and patriotism! But then I had some friends and relatives who also sarcastically told me, “When is this NRN (Non-Resident Nepali) returning back?” I had many people tell me how foolish I am on taking this decision to come back to Nepal! At this time, the NRN Conference also took off! Some of my friends, fellow NRNs were busy rushing back, flying back one or two days before Tika because of the packed airline schedules for Dashain. But it was truly wonderful to know that my friend, Sagar Onta who happens to be the Youth Representative of the Non-Resident Nepali Association seemed delighted to be home for Dashain to spend Dashain with his family and at the same time, was hopeful that the Government will extend cooperation in implementing their many projects!

Dashain 2064 also brought back lots of vivid memories to my mind. I thought of us playing cards, kites, firecrackers, counting daskhina, playing on the swing and got quite nostalgic. This was aggravated by the fact that this Dashain, the only daughter and granddaughter who in Kathmandu was me. All my sisters, brothers and cousins are all studying or working abroad and none decided to make it home this Dashain. But I felt truly satisfied that I was here to receive tika from my sick relative, too. He lay on the bed as he put tika on our foreheads but I felt this was the most emotional fulfilling aspect of this Dashain for me. I thought what a beautiful festival we have-that allows us to get together with loved ones and receive blessings from our elder relatives and what a beautiful culture that teaches us to respect our elders!

During Dashain, we had many people coming to our house. For the menu, there was the usual meat, rice, chiura, vegetables, sweets, yogurt, fruits including aloo dum. But I couldn’t stop smiling when someone starting complaining that this Dashain, the price of the potatoes have gone up drastically, my Mother should have made lauka dam instead. He said that on one hand, we’d be enjoying a Dashain feast and on the other hand, we’d be following Ram Dev’s diet regime! My friend suggested that from new year onwards, people should refer to the Rastriya Bank’s Price Index before giving dakshina or in other words, mangi bhatta has to be taken into account, or too could go out on the streets!

I also noticed that our Nepalese society is becoming more skeptical and vocal about the old age custom of making animal sacrifices. I saw articles in newspapers and magazines and people were talking about this old age custom. Had it to do with the blood shed and atrocities that have taken place while I was away, I wondered. To follow suit, a friend of mine also bought 10 kilos of meat and kept it in the freezer. Likewise, I also did not hear too much hype about the Dashain sait, the most auspicious time to put on tika.

Though things are changing, I noticed that the niceties of Dashain had been kept intact. I saw that from Talchikhel to Panchkhal, children were busy playing on the swings. Till Astami, the eight day of Dashain there was a huge rush of people in New Road, the hub of shopping in Kathmandu, rushing and buying for Dashain! It occurred to me that we, Nepalese people have the power of resilience, the power to adapt, adjust and accommodate as Sai Baba has said and to learn to live in spite of the uncertain situation of Nepal. Even those people who were working even on the day of Tika had little complaints. My friend, Surendra Phuyal who works for the BBC was a bit disappointed but told me that it is indeed an honor to be home and to receive tika from his parents and elders on this special day.

The week leading up to Dashain, there wasn’t a Nepal bandh, and the arms had been laid down. For a while, I thought I had taken back in time and for a while, I quite enjoyed what seemed to be like a beautiful dream! I thought of all those people in Kapilvastu who have had a bitter year and have been displaced without ghar or bahar. My heart went out to them! I sometimes can’t imagine we got to this magnitude of situation. I secretly hoped that this spirit during Dashain will not wane even after Dashain. I believe Nepalis all over the world united for Prashant’s triumph which clearly showed that once we unite, nothing is impossible and that we can lead the country to peace and development. Taking a cue from Prashant’s triumph, our ability to unite and Goddess Durga’s blessings for us to win over the evil for peace to prevail, I thought maybe our dreams of a Nabin Nepal will come true!

The other hot topic during the Dashain parties in my household seemed to be modern day thieves who visit houses when Dashain is the air!My relative had recently been bothered by this thief in broad daylight on Phulpati this year. This thief in a mask demanded for mobile phones, watches and cash. Poor lady had no choice but to hand over the mobile phones and watches but she used her instinct and said, “Bhai, you’re taking our mobile phones but maybe please have the sim cards?” But just before he left, he did not forget to say, “Thank you Aunty. Dashain greetings to you. “Another family friend narrated a story of how on Saptami, she saw a truck of household items being loaded on to a truck. She thought to herself, “What a time to shift,” but that very evening, her neighbor told her that it was a thief had gotten inside the house and stolen their goods when they had gone off to visit different temples. Someone suggested that we should always have some fresh bank notes in the house all the time during Dashain for our own personal safety!

Dashain was on in full swing but the hordes of people coming and going outside the country did not stop. On the Astami morning, I saw some healthy youngsters dressed in designer track suits and expensive sports shoes, jogging at six. It was rather interesting because on their backs, they had dokos filled with wood sticks. It looked a bit strange and so I asked them what was going on. They told me that it was their physical preparation to become lahures in near future!

With the span of three years, the mobile craze has really really caught Kathmandu! This Dashain, I met lots of souls who had the malshri tune as rigntones which I found really amusing! However, what was pleasing was that one should really be thankful that even mobile phones registered in Nepal have global roaming and we can send sms to people all over the world. In spite of the miles between us, I kept in touch throughout Dashain with my friends and relatives, conveying messages of Dashain! I also met another lot of people who were complaining that they had been busy cooking and cleaning the house and driving around since their helpers and chauffeurs were on Dashain leave. Someone even suggested that since a lot of women celebrate Teej by enjoying themselves the modern way, the Kathmanduites are quite ready for Dashain tika at party palaces or hotels! I also heard many logics of celebrating or not celebrating Dashain and saw many people on the streets with white Tika on their foreheads.

My Dashain this time around was extremely interesting! I am very convinced that you also had a remarkable Dashain. Now, Diwali is on the way, let us hope Goddess Laxmi will bless everyone and give us a fantastic and interesting Diwali!

Published in the Uni publication

Student Life

-Moheindu Chemjong

I started my student life in Australia in the beginning of 2003 and today, after almost twenty-one months of being a student at the Edith Cowan University (ECU), I can proudly say that I’ve come a long way and I’ve learnt more than I had ever thought…So where do I begin?

Before I go on, let me tell you a little about the culture of my home country, Nepal. Like in many Asian countries, the academic system is hugely focussed on rote-learning rather than analysing and giving a critique. And, therefore, I was an expert when it comes to learning by heart but besides my experience as a journalist, I had never learnt to research or critically analyse texts and think independently when it comes to assignments. Similarly, on the home front, too things are very different. People from good families have people to do the household chores and chauffeurs to drive them around. The members of the families who are still students have only one priority in life and that is to study. It is for this kind of tradition that I hailed from that I had never lived on my own, looked after the house or ever cooked a single meal!

When I arrived I was hardly prepared for the huge difference and the cultural gap but I knew I was here for a purpose, to earn a degree and therefore, I pushed on, I tried and survived. The best thing about my lectures at ECU were that they were mostly in the evenings. The night hawk that I am, I enjoyed doing all my research and writing assignments till late in the night and wake up comfortably and then go to lectures in the evenings. Therefore, my evening lectures would be like going out in the evenings with friends and attending some seminar conducted at some hi-fi conference hall before a cocktail party! Soon, I learnt that the students are assessed not only in their exams like in my home country but we had assignments to do and presentations to give. In the first semester, I did have a difficult time with the assignments and reports because I was not familiar with the expectations out of the students but with a little help from the Academic Advisor, I soon started getting distinctions. By the second semester, my grades improved drastically and I was absolutely thrilled. I learnt that starting well ahead in time whether it came to assignments or presentations was the way to score well and maybe it was because of this reason that I spent hours after hours studying! I noticed how people in Australia mostly wear formals on special occasions unlike in my home country and when my classmates started asking me if I had presentations because of my dress-up, I decided to be a Roman in Rome! I started sticking to casuals and smart casuals. I loved presentations for they would allow me to go to class in my Sunday best! Presentations were a fantastic way of learning how other people speak in public and also gave me a chance to practice my presentation skills. Those were the days when I would get butterflies in my stomach but after doing many of them, I can now that I am very confident when it comes to presentations.

The other type of assessment was group work where two, three people had to put their heads together and work in a team. Though at times, arranging for meetings was quite an ordeal as we had to take all the group members in consideration, I think it was worth the effort. There was a time when a certain group member tried to be pushy but in rest of the other group assignments, I had a very enjoyable time. Working together as professionals, commenting on one another’s contributions and getting to know my colleagues better was fantastic indeed. Group work not only led to stress but also to some wonderful friendships! But, I think the best part were the exams. Having studied in Asia and having mastered almost all the skills of giving exams, I enjoyed sitting for exams. When I was first told about the take-home exams, I was in cloud nine! Never had exams been made so very easy and all we had to do was to look for the answers, though I admit that the questions in take-home exams are very tricky! When I could go to the beach, lie down on the sand and do my take-home exam, I couldn’t ask for more. And even the exams where the questions given before hand were fabulous, I could concentrate on the answers that I am confident in and prepare them only to get very good marks! Therefore, I was completely satisfied by the way the assessments were done and though I had never learnt to think outside the square, I think I have very well learnt the skills on doing presentations, writing critiques and also faring well in exams.

When the pressure of the exams mounted and when I thought that I had reached the saturation point, I used to just pack my bags and head to Down south for a couple of days’ break. Australia’s beautiful landscapes and lovely beaches always did the trick and then I would come back, feeling rejuvenated as ever. In the run of taking breaks, I went to Melbourne, Sydney, and Western Australia’s down south. Besides reading, I have become a movie buff and because I can utilize my thinking skills even to movies, I have become quite of a movie critic. Maybe later in time, I could use this skill combined with my writing to be a professional movie critic!

The lecturers too were fantastic. Not only were they highly educated, skilled and very professional but they were also were very helpful, friendly and understanding. This made the whole learning experience for me as an international student very convenient, interesting and enriching. Some of them were so passionate about their subjects that I used to catch their bug and go home feeling completely satisfied after every single lecture. Some of them spoke so eloquently and I think I could thank them for their use of idioms, sayings and such beautiful words that even my vocabulary has greatly increased!  It was wonderful to know how they climbed the ladder of success and in a way, some of my teachers were role models for me. One of the lecturers was a highly qualified lady with the brains, the sense of humour, charm and the drive and I could completely relate to her and in fact, I wish to be like her in some ways when I am her age! On the whole, the teachers at Edith Cowan University were brilliant and I feel privileged to have been their students.

The other lot of people I met at University were my colleagues from different parts of the world-from Kenya to Korea and from United Kingdom to India. It was a lovely, cosmopolitan mixture of students from different races, cultures and ethnicities all doing all the same course, all with a common purpose of doing well in life. Being in a lecture theatre with all the highly-motivated students, I also felt like giving in my best and aspiring to fulfil all my dreams and ambitions. Though at first I was intimidated by the fact that I was one of the young students in the postgraduates, I learnt that even my experiences and my opinions are listened to with great interest and slowly, I was comfortable sharing my thoughts and work experiences in my home country. I got a wonderful opportunity to learn about the different cultures of my fellow classmates, the different work practice in different cultures and in the run, I have some wonderful friends whom I know will be friends for life.

On the home front, things were equally interesting. I rented an apartment but I had no idea how to look after the house and how to cook. After living on sandwiches, instant noodles and take-a ways, I decided to learn how to cook. I started with the simple recipes and in my learning process, I burnt my hands, cut my fingers and wasted a lot of food but then slowly, I got a feel of cooking. I then graduated to cooking some decent dishes and within a year, I became quite a good cook. My friends developed a liking to my cooking and at this point of time, cooking has become a great passion for me and whenever I have spare time in hand, I try to cook yet another gourmet cuisine and when I go back home this summer, I am planning to impress my family members with my newly acquired skill! But in spite of my culinary skills, every time the pressure of assignments became difficult to handle as deadlines arrived, I used to head to Hungry Jacks’, Dominoes, MacDonald’s or some fast food restaurant, maybe a bit too much! At the same time, I also learnt how to clean and look after the house. I’ve also learnt some tips of gardening and my little garden of petunia and my lemon grass plants are doing fantastic! In fact, from the studious student of back home, I have also become quite a home-maker! While doing the household chores, I used to remember the uneducated women in the villages whose sole duty is house-keeping and how they have to wash dishes with cold water and straw even in the freezing cold weathers because hot water is a luxury! Thinking about these tolerant, hard-working women in Nepal makes wants me to do well in my studies and remember what my duties towards my motherland and the unprivileged people in Nepal. Doing the household chores has also made me realize the joys and pains of the people working in my house and wonder what it is to do just household chores for a living. In fact, I’ve also become responsible, patient, understanding and sensitive of other people’s needs. Therefore, doing the daily household rituals has not only made me ready to be a good home-maker later in life but has taught me some valuable lessons in life.

Today, University life has ended for me and I am preparing for my exams. I’ve deeply fallen in love with ECU and I feel I will miss the wonderful University, my friends, my favourite place-the Churchlands library with the huge collection of books, the much loved Mega lab, the cafeterias, and the Postgraduate lab. I will also miss being in an academic environment of learning. But heart of hearts, I will always treasure and cherish my student life at the Edith Cowan University and I will remain indebted for what it has given me-a degree, a chance to grow intellectually, a chance to become a better person. It has given me the hope that I can soar high above in the sky and has armed me with the skills to do so!