It was early summer and my windows were open to the evening. The warm breeze and the music of crickets drifted in. I closed my novel and walked towards the porch. The sky was clear inclining me to take a stroll towards my regular shop to feed on a Maggie. I resumed back to my room, opened the closet door and fretted for my Jeans pant. My Nokia phone began to ring, and I groped for my mobile phone on the bedside table.
“Wai boss, this is Namcha”
“O yea dude, anything” I replied
“Yea man, come to our place, Maddy, Psycho Penjor and Fatso are here”
‘’So, I guess you want to go to party”. I retorted
“Yea man”
“But dude, Maddy will drink again, Doctor has advised him to stop or it will be fatal this time”
As a grade-schooler I vividly remember my class teacher asking me my ambition. I would poster my self ridiculously and then with a haughty voice I would say “when I grow up, I want to be an Army officer because I want to kill my enemy”. Now as I lay relax in my living room, it looks so obvious for child when he sees his father in the glamorous outfit with three stars and a belt worn around the waist to support the pistol, would naturally idolize his dad. I would spend most of my time contemplating when ever the Armies were on parade. I decided I would be a soldier.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama (as cited in Jirel, 2009) articulated:
The basic thing is that everyone wants happiness, no one wants suffering. And happiness mainly comes from our own attitude, rather than from external factors. If your own mental attitude is correct, even if you remain in a hostile atmosphere, you feel happy.
Happiness must come from within and for that to happen; it is essential that we start loving our selves first. If we do that, we will be filled with positive attitude since respecting ourself and accepting that fact that we are not perfect would lead us to focus on the positive path of the life rather than on negativity, anger and hatred.
The most magnificent and beautiful peaceful country “The Kingdom of Bhutan” lies between two giant countries, India in south and China in the north. Though land locked she has reasons to be proud for she is made up of many beautiful villages. The villages are mostly untouched by the invasion of pollution and disasters. Bubbling streams, evergreen forest, sweetened air and harmonious people are the general composition of the hamlets, together framing panoramic views for any visitors that instills into them the sense of fondness and memory abiding. For this reasons I shall touch upon my village called “Tangsibji”.
Tangsibji village is located in Trongsa District about 21 Kms short of Trongsa Dzong if coming from Thimphu towards Trongsa. It is one of the finest and splendidly located villages in the district if compared appropriately with the villages of other Districts in Bhutan; it may edge out other best villages in the country for there are many reasons that will unfold as I elaborate further
.
The village has two main portions. The upper portions which yield crops like maize, potatoes and wheat is spread along the Thimphu-Trongsa highway. The lower portion which yields mainly rice is spread upward adjoining Mangdi Chu and Nika Chu. A panoramic view of the village can be seen from the village called Taktsi located at the other side of the Mangdi Chu. It has an area of about eighty one square kilometers and comprises of about hundred twenty households with a population of about one thousand two hundred. The villagers speak Mangdipa dialect and both men and women are generally tall and well built. This community believes in speaking less and working hard. If any one chance to visit any of the houses in the neighborhood, you will find them well stocked with adequate ration. But hard cash will be scarce since they are yet to be exposed to lucrative business. A daily chore of farming is their look out and they always remain busy in that.
Believe it or not I had a very pleasant and gratifying day which ought to go down my memory lane as something not easily forgettable. Yet to get hold of a job, I am blessed with a cute daughter who is already fifty five days old. I moved with my family to Phuentsholing to escape the bitter cold at Thimphu. Amidst our stay here, the news of H.H.Namkhai Ningpo`s visit to Phuentsholing excited us all. After all my daughter`s first blessing on being welcomed to this wonderful kingdom is going to be from this great lama, who was one of the eight revered disciples of Guru Rinpoche.
Dressed in our best attire, we set off to meet the great lama. On reaching the spot, we managed to inch our way near where the lama sat. Here sat a down to earth, simple and pious looking saint in a simple monk robs. We offered our khadhar and Rimpoche in turn blessed us with the same scarf which he put gently around our neck. My request for a name for my daughter was accepted with a calm and serene look on my daughter from his holiness. After a momentary pause of meditation came the much revered voice ‘UGYEN CHOEDEN’. Later on a KAGO wang was initiated by Rinpoche to the devotees gathered around.
Factual reports can sometimes be so humorous that you can sometime sit back and enjoy for having come across it with a bang. It so happened when I was doing my Post Graduate in RIM as a day scholar. Shuffling through paper cuttings and guide books I was busy completing my assignments. Totally geared up for in my task with a solid ambition to score well in the subjects in hand, I was deeply engrossed with my final touches to the papers when my mobile phone rang…….Jhalam jhalam gi ashi…..Reaching out for my mobile I answered in haste with my eyes still glued to my documents.
Azha Nga gey! (Meaning- Uncle it’s me! - in my mother tongue dialect)
Slightly agitated for the disturbance I replied back, “my nephew, I shall call you after sometime”; Switched off the phone and got back to my business. Interested and taxed by the work in hand, machineries in me sent a warning that I must take a break or else repairs will be costly. I came out of my room, sat on the door steps of my house and enjoyed the fresh evening air with a sweet cup of coffee my wife have served. Just as the sweetness of the coffee befriended me in terms of taste and warmth amidst the chilly evening weather, so also the serene beauty of Changzamtok valley that unfolded in front of me captured my inner self to even richer taste and warmer warmth that sailed my very existence along the cascading Thimphu river to the paradise of William words worth’s poetic imagination- dancing with the daffodils. The dancing with the daffodils became a crusher as one of its petals hit my cheek so hard that I was reminded of my obligation to my dear nephew. My nephew, Samten Dorji, six year old and was studying in PP at Jigme Namgyel Primary School in Tangsibji village in Trongsa.
