20 Jan

This afternoon, after and between classes, I got to work in the garden. It really has become my hobby to try to make things better, no matter how small they are. I cut a piece of bamboo to wedge in the bottom of Ken's door frame to try to keep the draught out. If it doesn't work too well, we can fill the gap under it with clay that I found when I went for a quick walk in the valley across the road. I also re-dug the water channel that leads out of the kitchen as the mud had collected and didn't drain away. I put some house bricks in to strengthen it and it looks much better.

Then, I added some flat stones to the path leading to the garden bedrooms to make it look nicer and even out the path. The only tool I have for this is a spade but it is enough. It takes me back to the things I did in Ecuador and I really enjoy doing this kind of work. I even quite liked feeling the strain in my back again! Somehow, it just feels right. :)

The students thanked me for my work, which to me isn't like work and I plan to keep busy there to make the garden look better. They will be moving out in August, to their new house that the Dalai Lama has paid for but they can still have nicer surroundings for a few months.

Following on from conversations with the Tibetans, I was asked by one of the students to check her written work, which was her life story. I was more than happy to do this but when I started reading it, I felt almost privileged to do so. She is 20 years old and comes a nomadic family, who couldn't afford to send her to school. She ended up leaving them at 16 and going to Lhasa on her own to get some education. Later, as all Tibetan refugees do, she walked through the Himalayas into Nepal (it's not so risky to cross the border at night there as they are less likely to be shot) and then came to India. Like the others, they she hasn't seen her family since as it is illegal for Tibetans to cross any border but being able to come to school she sees as her golden opportunity in life.

I told her that she must feel free to ask me for any help at all that she would like...

 We get some beautiful views of the Himalayas here. :)