The Royal Academy

                 Photo- ruins of a traditional Bhutanese house at the Academy site

The visit to the site gave new rays of hope to all the aspiring teachers who would be the heart of the Academy's human resource. Looking the site at it's ground phase was a bit worrisome thought that almost all the teacher had initially but everyone is so positive that things will be as per the plan.
While ground works are almost done as mentioned in my previous blog which we saw as we moved across the compound. What fascinated me the most was to see some ruins of the traditional Bhutanese house which clearly indicated that the site was inhabited by people some decades back. How long it could be, is still a mystery. But, looking at the trees around and hearing to some engineers of the site who made some rough estimation concludes that the settlements were withdrawn some 60-70 years back. Now the question that struck my mind was what could be some possible reasons that made people to leave the place which is infact so beautiful?
The probable answer to this could be,  due to scarcity of drinking water or due to some spiritual beliefs which disrupted the mental peace and harmony of the inhabitants made them to withdraw and live elsewhere.  But the more predicted answer is due to the scarcity of water as there is no water source nearby that could be sufficient throughout the year.
However, the place is so mesmerising that anyone who visits the place will get real happiness both of the scenery around and the view of Paro valley that glows in the rays of sunlight. The lichens also adds to the scenery and gives a pinnacle outlook to the environment of Panbisa, where the Academy stands. Mean while the water source for the Academy is identified some miles away and the team is working to get it done which was not possible to the years mentioned above.

Fire fighter or coila gari?

                Photo- police officer showing demo, how to use extinguisher during fire emergency

It was great to have the people from fire departments at the Academy, who explained briefly regarding the fires and its types. They also elaborated precisely on types of extinguishers and certain safety measures that one should take during calamities.
While the officer was explaining he cited a joke which infact is a reality, saying that they get calls from different places during fire outbreaks and they try to get there as fast as possible. Because the incidents don't happen in the place we want to, nor do we wish it happens but without understanding the external factors people blame the fire fighters for being late.
They call the vehicle as "coila gari" which means coal vehicle because it arrives late at the scene, at times after everything is being burnt or at least maximum being destroyed. But, the very first thing we must understand is the distance between the incident spot and the fire safety station before putting all blames to them. We must consider the limiting factors like distance, time and speed. It is very easy to say but it is not so easy as we imagine things.
Therefore, let us understand that there are certain barriers and we must have patience for everything which otherwise would create chaos and nothing else.
However let us first be very mindful in making our homes, schools, communities and environment safe so that we all continue to live in peace, harmony and glory. Our slightest carelessness may ruin our lives, is so meaningful and precious that we cannot take it for granted. Be safe...

My I- CUP and my theoretical assumption of it

                                                                 Photo- I-cup

This is my I-cup and people make joke by the way it sounds. Some say I...C...U...P. Hm...however I have special assumption for this cup. May be few years from now, we shall expect to see such beautiful product and hopefully it would be apple company who would be the first one to produce such type as most of us admire it's quality.

Now, the assumption that I have for this I-cup is that it checks all your sugar level and pressure as you drink something from it as it comes in contact to your mouth. So it keeps you updated and helps you to maintain you health as these two diseases are very common problems for large section of population across the globe.
It is funny but hope someday it would be come out as a real product..I am proud to have the first I-CUP in the world. hahaha....cheers...

The last leaf

           

Photo- Sonam Peljor

When I first saw this photo I just felt wow, what a beautiful scene it was.  But after seeing the picture for sometime, I felt that within no time it will fade away like those other leaves which although were equally beautiful and stood so proudly high above the ground someday but were blown to the unknown destination now. These struck my mind and made me realize that nothing is permanent so will this leaf be. But the leaf also ensures that as long as it is there, it will cherish every moment of its life.

I compared the faith of this leaf to our life we lead. We are born; we grow up into adults, we get married, have kids, grow old and finally the day comes where we would be just seconds away from our last breadth. However powerful we may be but this movement is certain and no one can escape from that.

Like the faith of this leaf depends on wind that would take it away so shall our soul depend on the faith of hope. In the distant land we may go, how far we never know nor did we ever heard of, as it depends on our karma is what people say. How far is it true, god knows.

As said earlier, on thing is true, both the faith of this leaf and our lives. Some moments from now we must head towards our unknown destiny. How soon or later we don’t know again. This makes me realize if tomorrow is my last day of my life, what is that I would do today. This helps me to grow in life. It gives me strength to understand that nothing is permanent. I see no reasons to be selfish, rude and hate others for no reasons. All I have in me is to enjoy my life to the fullest and help others so that my small sacrifice would bring changes in their life. The leaf give’s me answer why Buddha left his comforts to lead a simple life. It justifies why Alexander commanded his hands to be kept unfolded after his death.

Therefore, like this last leaf can only hope that it would be taken by the wind to a safe land let us hope that we too would find a safe place to be but let us also see that there are no reasons to be angry or selfish in lives we live. Let us cherish each moments we live with sense of love, respect and compassion.  Let peace be our principles of religion, love be the root of our actions and truth be the guiding pillars of our words. We shall create a history that was never before and shall never be again in future.

Happy Birthday Your Majesty

On this joyous occasion, let us join the nation in celebrating the 60^th birth anniversary of His Majesty the 4^th King of Bhutan. 

The King who sacrificed everything for his people. The King who gave everything for his subjects and kept nothing for himself. The King who safeguarded the country by leading the operation to drive away the enemies during the war.

The King who showed the world, the strength of youth, by shouldering the whole responsibilities of a country when he was barely 16 years old. The King who rooted the principle of GNH, when the world was struggling with wars, poverty and corruption. The King who gifted his people, the whole country, when we all were so happy under his rule. The king, who had such wide vision for his Country. Indeed we don’t have enough words to express our gratitude to such a legendary leader. He is the role model for every Bhutanese in all times and shall be ahead forever.

Last but not the least, I join the Nation in wishing His Majesty the 4^th King, many, many happy returns of the day. May you live long and keep guiding us at all times ahead in creating a unique Bhutan, a role model country in the world.

Happy Birthday your Majesty

                                                       

                                           His Majesty the Fourth King

Be happy for what you are

Once there was a man who lost one of his hands in an accident. He was as sad as it was very unfortunate for him to have such misfortune. He started to remember his past as he was very handsome man, strong and attractive, well loved by many girls.  He was not what he was anymore.

He could see people around him playing and now he could no longer play anymore. Till few days his friends and relatives came to see him but gradually the number declined. All these memories made him so sad as he thought and thought. Everything gave him sadness as he no longer could withstand and he decided to commit suicide.

                     Photo- www.lawn.com

The very next early morning before anyone woke up he walked towards the sea to jump and die. But when he reached the sea luckily there saw a man who was lying on ground. Looking at his sad face the man on the ground asked him "hey handicapped man'' where are you going early morning. The young guy man replied I came to commit suicide as the  man on ground asked why?

He narrated all his sad story and wanted to walk further as the man on the ground said.

You fool the man said. Look at me, I don’t have any hands but still I am very happy. I wish I had one like you stupid so that atleast I could rub my back. Don’t you understand the reason why I am lying on the ground? You are a loser, fool and the most hopeless creature that I have ever seen in this world.

The young one man had no answer for this as he realized there are people with bigger problems than him as he went back home and worked hard and didn't realized when he actually became successful. Reflecting back his days, he was so much thankful to the man who changed him but all he could do was to remember him and have so much gratitude. He knew happiness is a state of mind so he choose to be happy always.

 I wish my story has given you some hopes to be happy for what you are and help you grow for what you can be ahead. 

Best wishes

Let us learn to drink intelligently

                

                      Photo source- mommyshorts.com

Once there were two young good friends, cute and handsome. Both were intelligent,well appreciated by fellow friends of their surroundings. Now as they grew they were exposed into a new environment where friends were of different types. Let me name one as Yanku and the other Lenku. Now Yanku was quite simple and didn’t want to join into bad company while Lenku was little cunning so he chooses some naughty friends.

Now Yankus friends were more interested to study so they developed a strong interest in this area while Lenkus team were more interested in doing stupid things. Slowly Lenku and his company started to smoke and drink. Within no time they were heavy drinkers and the habit was cultivated permanently. They promised within groups that the drink united them and they had good time. Mean while Yankus group didn’t have much fun as they were more associated with books. Often Lenku and his friend called Yanku and his friends as bookworms and irritated them.

Time had passed by now and they had reached the secondary schools. Both Yanku and Lenku had qualified their exam and were through to the government college in their secondary level. Some of Lenkus stupid friends had also qualified along with him while most of Yankus friends were through.

Yanku celebrated his success with juice and cake while Lenku and his friend celebrated their joy with bottles of wine. Now they were back to the same class but with different attitudes. Lenku didn’t value Yankus words much although he tried to advice his friend but had no option then to give up. Yanku started to work hard while Lenku continued with his joy. He was not just influenced by his company but now he started to influence others. Within no time the time had passed by and soon it was time for them to write their board exams.

 Yanku was fully prepared while Lenku got tensed at the last moment and started to sacrifice the end days burning midnight flames. Now it was time for them to write their exam. Both of them and their friends started writing exam. Yanku and most of his colleagues did well while Lenku and his friends were hopeless after exam.

Yanku started dreaming high while Lenku barely had any hopes left since the exams. Yanku started sharing dreams with friends, relatives and family while Lenku could not resist drinking with his company. Finally the dates for results were nearer and the heart rates of boys started to increase faster and faster as the twelveth hour closed by.

It was the day when results were out. Each of the boys ran faster to the internet cafe to see their luck. Both Yanku and Lenku were set to see their result and as they typed their index  the marks were displayed on the screen as the boys closed their eyes. Their heartbeat could be heard but they also could not resist seeing their marks.

Lenku has got 60 % while Yanku had topped his school with 85 % in the same stream (Science). Lenku was satisfied with his results and while Yanku was over joyed with his marks. Almost all of Lenkus friend had barely passed while most of Yankus friend were sure to qualify for scholarship.

Finally it was time for the scholarship division to place all the qualified students to different fields. Yanku qualified for Architecture course while Lenku was just selected for Diploma. Yanku went back to his family after he was selected and enjoyed there. He organized a grand party although he was a son of a farmer but to his caliber he invited all his neighbors, relatives and families and gave a treat for them. Mean while Lenku too was excited that he got diploma course and called his friends to hotel and had good time there. He was a son of a normal civil servant.  Even his friends sponsored him dinner and drinks at times and he had the best time of his life.

The boys met for the last time and even Lenku congratulated Yanku’s success and Yanku thank his fellow mate and also advised him but in vain. So they parted their ways and after long time both the boys were away from their sight for the first time in their life. Yanku had gone out of the country while Lenku was in a training institute within the country.

Time passed by and the boys were nearing their completion and Lenku's course was for three years while Yanku's was for five. It was time for Lenku to complete his Diploma course while Yanku still had two more years to study. As always the exam came and Lenku did to clear and he celebrated his completion with series of drinks. He invited all his past and present mates and all of them together celebrated his success as they shared their past experiences. They all regretted each others absent as most of the friends present there were Lenkus past school mate(except Yanku) who could not qualify anywhere. All of them were happy that atleast one of them had come back and had successful story to share.

Soon Lenku had a job and he rented a house and started to settle while his past mates started to join him soon. They used to have heavy drinking nights and each day they had same fun. They even talked of their school days and some of them narrated how stupid Yanku used to be with books and still he must be mugging up notes in his college. Lenku laughed and supported the statement like what the hell he got after mugging. See I am earning a handsome amount he laughed. By the time he joins service I would  earn a lot, have one beautiful wife and so on he continued.

 Time passed by and Lenku could not give up his habit, as he was more regular drinker than usual as he had more cash then ever before. All his friends were his guest each day and didn't want to leave his house. He not only had to feed them but had to sponsor drinks each nights as everyone tempted as he could not limit himself. Each day they increased their dose and not just at home they started to get together in bars and pups. Peer pressure increased on him each day and he got irritated and started quarreling with his friends.  The relationship gradually started to sour between Lenku and his friends as they broke their relationships but his habit remained which was even worst then before. His dreams and future was just his addiction to drinks and nothing more. He had no time to think about his parents, profession and anything else.

Meanwhile Yanku had his regular duties on but as he was about to complete his fourth year his friends and himself started planning of how their life would be after so many years of struggles. He often talked of Lenku how he must have been as he was naughty and his friends were even worst. He laughed he must have married by now. Yanku and his other professional mates started to go out to resorts at times.

While Lenkus social behavior had gradually declined and he had frequent fights with his friends. He started to go late in office and remained absent at times. His boss warned him often as he begged for forgiveness. He promised that he would improve but no sooner he reached home he forgot his words and started his regular duty. His addiction had no degree and the cultivated habit will not leave him throughout.

On the other hand Yanku was in his final year and he balanced his studies and recreation as he and his friends went out for dinners frequently as they slowly added wines to their dines. Wow..Yanku said as he sipped from his wine glass. These many years of studies are finally going to end now. They all regretted and were sad as their absence would mean lot to each of them. Yet they promised to meet at times and Yanku promised he would call everyone for his marriage. Now it was time for their final exam and all of them did well and after their last meet they parted their ways with new destiny ahead.

Yanku was back to the country as he started looking for jobs while Lenkus condition continued to worsen and doctors had diagnosed him with Liver cirrhosis and he needed an immediate treatment. With all the savings he had and through the contribution made by his well wishers Lenku had to go for medical treatment outside the country. Nothing could be delayed and Lenkus parents had to send him treatment while Yanku had found a new job in a multinational company and started his career with a good pay scale. Soon he received his first salary and organized his first party. This was the most important day of his life. He brought his parents with him and kept happily.

Meanwhile Lenku had tough time and after spending all savings of his parents he was cured after long stay in the hospital. He was strictly warned if he drank again there would be no option for him then to die. The sad part on the other hand  was, he lost his job and he became weaker than ever before. Yanku was fully settled and everyone appreciated his passion for his job so he gained reputation and promotions too. He had more number of friends than before. They called him to dinner often and offered drinks, which he took with limits. Slowly he started enjoying the taste of the wines more than ever before so he set his own Bar in his house. But being very sensitive and intelligent fellow he always knew to keep upper limit and his parents too had no objection for that. He married a beautiful lady and life seemed to be so lovely since then.

Lenku although had returned home after several months and his parents had to keep him with them. With no job he was so frustrated but had given up the habit of drinking or he would pay the prize.

One day Lenku was out for a walk when Yanku while coming back from his office as he saw Lenku walking so he stopped his car. Lenku couldn’t recognize him but Yanku did. He came and hugged his past friend. Tears rolled down his eyes seeing him so weak. Lenku could remember him at last and Yanku took him to his house and they talked for long time. Yanku offered him  drink but he could not drink as he narrated his sad story. Both of them stood by the balcony and saw each other and to their surprise Lenku had a cup of tea on his hand while Yanku had a glass of wine. Neither one could believe what they were seeing. 

So it is important to drink intelligently as stated in the story above. Cheers

Agriculture and my vision for Bhutan

Agriculture is the backbone of our nation till today and shall be forever. If we see the motive of every country today, each country is trying hard to succeed in technical field and many countries have achieved so much indeed. But in pretext of racing technically we have neglected the area of agriculture and someday we might have to fight for food, water and air if we don’t take extra care.

We must believe that the wealth of our nation should not be seen by our external debts and technical advancement but be seen by how sound we are agriculturally. This because at the end of the day what matters is how healthy you are physically and mentally.

But looking at the scenario today Bhutan has indeed neglected this area although Agricultural Ministry is trying to work in maintaining this yet have failed in certain areas. The beautiful and high yielding agricultural lands have been turned in towns (ex- Bajo) and mini-towns (Gyelpozhing), which I feel was not wise. On context of building these towns we have lost thousand acres of land which otherwise could have produced tons of grains and tons of vegetables. We can’t regret for the loss that we had but we should not succeed in making same mistakes again. 

                                     

                                       Photo- Bajo town which was once a beautiful agricultural land

Some ideas that I have  in enhancing our agricultural systems are,

a.     The first alternative to be agriculturally self-reliant is by identifying certain areas and converting them into large agricultural farms. Few areas where we find these huge fertile lands are like in Gelephu and Samtse where we can see 1000+ acres of land, which lies barren today, that can be converted in agricultural gardens that produces metric tones of rice and vegetables. Therefore government can take initiative and make them as agricultural farmland, which not just produces agricultural products but also will employ many hundreds of people.

b.    The second alternative is that we should set target for exporting agricultural items to foreign nation. One good example is “sangay samu”, which is capturing international market and indeed we should take advantage of such situation and promote many other agricultural products like, asparagrass, brochali, chillies, mushrooms, potatoes, tomatoes etc that would really fetch good income to our farmers. This can be done, if we really encourage young entrepreneurs to take responsibilities and work as the future is so promising. Many of these products can be canned and supplied to different parts of the world.

c.     The third way of promoting agriculture is that we should stop importing vegetables and pulses from neighboring country and target home production. We have enough agricultural land but yet we import all these products that clearly shows how inactive our genes are. It is not that we don't have resources but it’s all about having all resources but not utilizing in proper channels. Also there are many barren government lands which can be given to farmers on lease basis where they can grow agri-products and market it where we would be achieving a step closer towards self-reliant nation towards agriculture.

Therefore let us not wait for an auspicious day to start with but let us think each day is so auspicious and start working where we be the change to bring change in the society.