Why Am I a Teacher of Life at Jhamtse Gatsal?

- By Anita Kumari

Many times, people have asked me: “Why are you here?”

I am here because I am learning so many amazing things and there is so much more to learn in this place. I am here because my purpose is to learn and give back to the community as much as I can. I am here because I don’t know any other place which is filled with people who love you, take care of you, are compassionate towards you, and make you feel accepted that you can say: “I belong here.” Most importantly, I am here because I am proud to be a part of a journey to make this world filled with loving and compassionate people.

I joined Jhamtse Gatsal Children’s Community in 2013 as a primary school teacher. I was fresh out of college with no experience in teaching and a giant question mark about life. The opportunity that Jhamtse Gatsal gave me was not just to teach, but also to learn, self-transform, and grow as a person. Today I am a very different person than I was seven years ago.

This place gave me an opportunity to find meaning in my life when I was most scared, uncertain, and confused. When I first joined Jhamtse Gatsal, I wanted to support myself financially and gain some work experience. I had no idea that it would be so life-changing for me.

I am a product of the traditional education system in India, which is more teacher-centric than child-centric. So, I thought that is how teaching was done. But everything changed once I started getting trained by Jhamtse Gatsal’s educational advisor, Michelle Du Bois. She conducted many workshops on teaching. These pieces of training helped me a lot, along with our founder Gen Lobsang Phuntsok La’s sessions on Jhamtse Gatsal’s mission and vision. 

Over the years, I also got an opportunity to go on exposure trips to diverse schools within India to learn, observe, and get trained on their teaching styles. These exposure trips, training sessions, workshops, and my own teaching experience here have taught me a lot about what it means to be a teacher. More than that, they have taught me a lot about myself. I realize that I have taken on the world’s most important responsibility.

The first thing I was told when I joined Jhamtse Gatsal was that I was not just going to be a teacher here; I was expected to take on the role of being a parent to 100+children, a community member, and an active member of this new family. All of this was intimidating as well as comforting—knowing that this was not just going to be a place of work, it would be my new home too.

I read somewhere that “a teacher is a great communicator,” but of course, I was not born with this skill. I worry about public speaking, and I have social anxiety. Every day, being a teacher trains me in communication skills. It gets me out of my comfort zone. At Jhamtse Gatsal, our pedagogy focuses on a process of learn-reflect-engage to ensure wholesome learning in a child. This is something new that I have been working on and, in the process, I am learning to reflect on my own learning and apply it in my life. The language of love and compassion helps children regulate their emotions and realize their full potential. In the past, I often practiced these values when it was convenient. Now, I am learning to practice them consciously every day, even in inconvenient situations.

Almost every year people come to Jhamtse Gatsal from different places—they are very confident, have lots of fresh ideas, and amazing talents. I find them very intimidating and very inspiring. I have been learning a lot from them. They inspire me to be open to new ideas, less judging, more accepting, and they give me a different perspective towards many things. I love working with our visitors and learning from them.

Our sponsors and board members are the biggest inspiration of all to me. Their unconditional love and care towards our children and this community is so powerful. They teach me how to love and care for others unconditionally. This feeling of love is so beautiful that when I think about it, it fills my heart with joy and happiness.

I am beginning to understand the importance of relationships at a deeper level from all the people who have been here for a very long time. Whenever someone falls sick and something happens to someone’s family outside the community, everyone comes together to help the person and his/her family financially as well as emotionally. People take care of each other here in times of need. I am accepted here and everyone helps me to become a better version of myself every day, especially our managing director Vasudha, Teke, Sonam, and Amala Yangzom. They treat me like their daughter. Whenever I need something or someone to talk to, I know I can go to them and they will always help me. All the other members are also always available and ready to help and support me.

I got an opportunity to witness this first hand when I became a Head Teacher in 2017. The two-year period from 2017–2019 when I was the Head Teacher was the most important and awesome experience of my life so far. I had an opportunity to work under Vasudha’s supervision, which made my experience even more awesome. She is the best mentor anyone could ever ask for! With her support and guidance, I discovered new things about myself, especially my strengths and limitations. I learned many important skills, like decision making, problem-solving, listening to people, communicating my thoughts in an effective way, etc.

Being a headteacher connected me more with my team members and children. I got to know what it means to be a team leader. This opportunity made me wonder about Gen Lobsang Phuntsok la. I wondered where he gets his courage, strength, and ideas from. How is he able to keep it up at all times?  He makes hard decisions almost every day, faces problems, and comes up with new ideas to keep our community going. What amazes me most about him is how he can think through everything precisely for the long term and connect it with his vision. Every building and wall in this Community has a story of why it was built and how it is connected to his long-term vision. He motivates me to face challenges and never give up in life.

I am a kindergarten teacher and the little kids I teach are the love of my life. They teach me that each child learns differently and has a different capacity to process and apply the knowledge. I have learned that when children relate the learning to their daily lives, it becomes more meaningful and long-lasting. So, I strive every day to come up with local examples and projects. In doing so, I am also learning more about my own culture, language, and community.

Every day, my children give me reasons to laugh, to be positive, and to enjoy every moment in life. I am happiest when I am in my classroom with them. They are the purest, kindest, and most compassionate human beings on this planet. They teach me many things which push me to become a better teacher every day.