Our Children in Their Villages
The Covid-19 pandemic has imposed a new reality on us—one in which the Community is under lockdown and closed to visitors. Furthermore, most of our children are now back in their respective villages due to the state government’s directive to send children home. Our Amalas (housemothers) and staff members are constantly in touch with them to see how they’re doing and to support them however needed. Here’s a glimpse into how our children are managing this time away from the Community in the villages.
The Monpa tribe that most of our children belong to are known for their self-reliance. This is the primary reason why there are no beggars, or one sees no abject poverty in the region—the villages are an interdependent community, where everybody lends a helping hand to whoever is in need.
Most of the families have their own farms and produce from these farms can meet the family’s food needs. Often, the entire family can be seen lending a helping hand on the farm, irrespective of their age. The children help their families on the farms. During this period of crisis when our children have been back in villages, they have been of great help to their families to cultivate food and provide for their families. The lockdown and restriction on the movement of vehicles have significantly impacted the number of fruits and vegetables that the state of Arunachal Pradesh can get from Assam, the next state over. Now that most of the food supplies have to come from the farm, having an extra pair of hands is helpful.
Our children have also been helping their families in other ways: Sonam G. recently took up a construction project in a nearby town. The money he earned through the project helped support his mother’s medical expenses. He is happy to support however possible to help ease the family’s financial burden.
Lobsang T. (center in red shirt) volunteered in a nearby government residential school for a few months. He is now back in the Community to attend his college classes online. His teaching style and communication skills won him a lot of praise from the school’s headmaster. He was also a strong advocate against corporal punishment at the school. Don’t miss reading about his experiences in the upcoming monthly newsletter.
Sonam C., has been reaching out to her Amalas and staff to get help with educational resources so she can work on her Communicative English so she can be the voice for her family and village if needed. Apart from this, she helps her family on the farm and also takes care of her niece. She, along with a few other villagers, has volunteered to make cloth masks for her village community, so that all of them can be safe and protected against the coronavirus.
A few of our children from the nearby villages, Sangey T., Sonam C., Lobsang W., Tsandong L., and Dargey P., also extended their support to the local priest (lama) with prayers for the wellbeing of all sentient beings during this trying pandemic months. They received commendation and appreciation for their Tibetan recitation skills.
Two of our children, Tsering L., and Lobsang D. hail from a village a very remote village in the higher plains than where Jhamtse Gatsal is situated. When their Amala was able to reach them, we learned that apart from studying, they have also been helping the local drokpas (shepherds) in grazing their yaks.
We are pleased to share that thanks to your support, our children are able to receive real education, which according to Gen Lobsang Phuntsok la, our Founder, should prepare you with skills to nurture with compassion, guide with wisdom, and serve with a healthy and skilled body.
It is endearing and enriching to see our children bring this education alive in their larger communities and be of service in these trying times. None of which could have been possible without your generosity and encouragement, for which words are too insufficient to communicate our gratitude and appreciation. We hope that our children will pay forward your compassion and kindness in the ways they will choose to live their lives.