Chandraman

Chandraman (English name: Marley), is aged 12 and studying in Class Six.

Interestingly, his English name was “bestowed upon” him by the other kids while trying to write their names in my black notebook as he did not have any English name like the rest yet.

First thing worth noting is that he is rather small-built for his age, thus he had so much self-consciousness that he was asking me if he is too short/ small. (I almost half-jokingly replied to him to avoid taking wintermelon tea, i,e dong gua cha in Mandarin. "No, I used to be like you, you will grow, I replied instead. )

Beneath this petite physique, Chandraman is also one shy character in the house. I have noticed him sitting quietly by the window, using the windows grill as an anchor to do his friendship band. And there was one incident where he drew a lovely picture for the volunteer. Instead of giving straightaway to the volunteer, he held it in his hands, paced up and down the hallway and kept hestitating to give it as a gift. A few times, I would always stop him to ask him what was it he was holding in his hands, and if that was for any of us, and he would always look down, too embarrassed to admit. It was quite a joy to catch him “red-handed” in his shyness.

He has an amazing talent for arts and handicraft. For example, I bought this plain-looking boring black notebook for the kids to write introductions about themselves. On seeing the plain-looking boring black notebook, Chandraman drew a rose for me without hesitation, and offered to help me paste it on my notebook as a decoration. So, the plain-looking boring black notebook had transformed into a beautiful-looking notebook under his creative hands.

The rose has also captured the eyes of my friend, JY, who requested that Chandraman draw her a rose during my next trip...(Price tag for the art?! :p)

In his free time, needless to say, he likes to draw and do handicraft with the minimal resources he has. Usually the bed acts as a table for him to create his masterpieces.

The windows grill and the wooden platform, serves as his very own way of holding anchor to his friendship band.

His determination and passion for Arts shines through without doubt. For example, he learnt how to make a friendship band with his name in less than 1 hour. What had touched me was that he kept practising on his skills and worked towards the goal of perfection to make THE perfect friendship band. It was really inspiring to see his never-give-up attitude and great determination!

Also, worthy of mentioning here, he won several prizes in the school's art competition. Below were some of his masterpieces he drew during his art classes with the limited resources they had:

Some of Chandraman's cute photos. He is truly very photogenic!

During our trip, we brought along wet tissues (seems like quite a necessity in Tourists’ To-Bring checklist) which the kids saw and were fascinated with the smell and texture. We gave one piece of wet tissue to each of them. They were thrilled and repeatedly smell and use it to clean their face. Then, they would fold it nicely and keep it safely in their pockets. Repeated on several occassions, I saw them taking it out to smell and use as a handkerchief. On our last day, they even used the wet tissue to draw pictures and messages for us!

Below was what Chandraman drew on HIS Wet Tissue. Yes, Wet Tissue! The elephant was drawn with great details and it was probably the nicest elephant I had seen on drawing. What made it inspiring was that this delicate elephant came from the works of a 12 years old Kid. And on a wet tissue? Which is probably the last few materials we will choose to draw on.

Lastly, in the beautifully decorated notebook, this was what Chandraman wrote:

"I like to play all games but I like to draw pictures. I like also like English and Nepali, etc. I like to eat pizza. I like to go school everyday. I want to be a painter."

You are the painter, Chandraman! With your talent and good attitude at such a young age, I am sure you will go far!

~ Far from Target ~ Giving is a Blessing (Update)

We have a handful of friends, and friends' friend who has stepped forward and expressed their interest in helping these kids, in one way of another. For the help, trust and support of those that have come forth so far, we would like to express our gratitute and say Thank You.

We looked forward to hearing from many of you out there still, and sincerely hope you can contribute in your very own way, as we are still a long way from what we hope to achieve.

With the financial resources we could pool by the end of September, we would use it to pay the school fees directly, considering the fact that the Home has 5 months' due of school fees currently. Based on the school fees quote we obtained from the School, the Home approximately needs to pay at least SGD4,800 annually for the education of 20 kids.


Also, there are many people who are interested in giving nice clothing to the kids, just thought that I can provide more information here about the sizes. The kids there are generally very young and small-built, aged between Kindergarten to Primary Six. So if you have suitable clothings, or books that you would like me to bring over, please let me know. The only constraint is that, I can only bring only a limited amount of stuff (not exceeding my luggage limit), hence I will need to filter through the stuff before bringing them over.

Boys
Ramesh (Primary 5)
Kiran (Primary 5)
Bijay (Primary 6)
Surya (Primary 6)
Adeep (Primary 4)
Prem (Primary 4)
Chandraman (Primary 6)
Chandra (Primary 4)
Kashev (Primary 5)
Niraj (Primary 3)
Subas (Primary 5)
Gibon (Nusery)
Purna (Primary 2)



Girls
Binita (Primary 6)
Anita (Primary 2)
Sunita (Primary 3)
Kabita (Primary 5)
Puja (Primary 4)
Busang (Kindergarten)
Asmita (Primary 2)

Also, those who wants to pass me Snacks (like biscuits etc), or books (simple elementary storybooks or books with pictures, eg History/ Pictorial or provides information about countries) are very good suggestions!

Subas

Subas (English name: Simon), aged Aged 12

Subas is really quiet and a well-behaved boy. But sad to say, we were unable to know him better because he returned to the home just a few days before we left. Most of the time, he is hanging out in the Junior’s Boys Room, and playing with the other younger boys such as Gibon, Niraj and Keshav.

Below are the words that he eagerly took my black notebook to his room to write:

"I like to play table tennis and badminton. Sometimes I like to ride cycle. I like to be doctor. I like to science and english book. I like to eat pizza and momo. My favourite colour is yellow. I like to listening Nepali, Hindi, English music. I like to look Nepali movies. I like to swim. I like to different story and jokes. I like to visit Pokhara. I like to drawing picture. I like to go school everyday."

Hope to talk to him more when we get back to Nepal this coming October!

Ramesh

Next, Ramesh (English name: Ryan), aged 13 and studying in Class 5.

To me, Ramesh is one silent helper. He is always there to see if you need any help, need an extra pair of hands, need an extra serving of rice, need any help with your dishes etc etc.

Most of the time, he is rather quiet, walking around the house as if making sure everything was fine in the house. Afterall, he is one of the veterans who had spent a considerable 7 years of his childhood in the Home.

Not forgetting of taking care of the young kids, at the restaurant:

Generally, the kids are quite inspired by wrestlers.

This is what he wrote in my black notebook:

"I like to play tennis and ride to like cycle and my best food is rice. I like to play football. I like Nepali music. I like Nepali movies. My favourite subject is Science and Maths. I like reading drawing writing etc. I like to go everyday school. I like to be a doctor"

Keep the Samaritan and helpful spirit high cause no help is too small, Ramesh!

Adeep

His name is Adeep (English name: Brian). At age 11, he is studying in Class 4.

We did not see Adeep during our first few days at the home. Hence, he was kind of shy when he returned home from his village (according to the staff, the kids go back to their village sometimes during festivals) and saw 3 foreigners hanging out around his room. Therefore, he was quiet and reserved. But after awhile, he began to know us better and was really playful and cheerful. He is also one who will protect the small or weaker, not hesitating to argue with any other kids (not amongst the 20 goodies children of course) who are bullying the younger ones.

One day, Adeep was telling me that he is going to the cobbler that day (in school, or nearby) to repair his school shoes as there was a hole in the sole. He came home from school, delighted, showing me the repaired shoes. The hole was sort of still there, but now he got a paper cardboard to use as a sole pad for “protection”.

I looked at the shoe in much disbelief, but kept it in my mind for days, repeated thinking if I should get him a new pair of school shoes as it might be unfair if I just buy him a new pair of shoes, neglecting the other kids. So towards the end of my trip, I finally had one chance to buy him a pair of shoes. His face lit up with a wide smile when I told him I was getting him a new pair of shoes, after which he mumbled something to the elder boys in Nepali.

The happiness on his face was really beyond words, and unforgettable. I am really glad I bought him a new pair of shoes, one that cost only SGD8, yet could bring so much joy to him.

Adeep in his school and favourite yellow house sports attire.

Adeep’s first taste of Milkshake, along with his tasty Chicken Pizza, unbelievable satisfaction.

On my last day, I wrote a note to each kid, offering some words of encouragement. Particularly for Adeep, I mentioned that he looked fierce when he doesn’t smile.

He read my letter, treasuring it like a piece of gem and was about to place it neatly into his own “cupboard cubicle”, when I stopped him to ask if he understood what I wrote (in English).

He smiled and looked back at me, shaking his head slightly, and say “No” pointing to the word “Fierce” which he couldn’t apprehend. Body language was probably the best explanation I could use to explain this word to him. Hence I frowned my eyebrows and showed him an angry face. Adeep finally understood, then showed an instantaneous facial expression of Enlightenment, accompanied with a priceless smile on his face - one that I couldnt forget.

Adeep with his look-alike friend, Chandra:

On my little black notebook, Adeep wrote these:

"I like to play bicycle. I want to be a doctor. I like to eat a chicken pizza. I read in class Four. My favourite colour is yellow. I like to Nepali movies and I like to Nepali music. I like to visit Pokhara and Singapore. I like to eat pizza and momo."

SINGAPORE – is one of the places he like to visit. I guessed as Singaporean Volunteers, we did bring them Hope and Fantasy about Singapore.

I end my entry about Adeep with “Keep Smiling” Adeep and everyone : )

Binita

Binita is the oldest girl in the home, at age 13.

She is also the coolest girl in the whole house, one with few words. Being the eldest, the responsibility of taking care of the girls and household chores fall on her. She is always seen around the house, sweeping the floor, helping with setting the fire, doing some needlework for the staff's wife or looking after their children.

But one thing we know for sure, she is very camera shy. Unlike the rest of the children who would wrestle forward, pull each other's hair or tear each other apart to get more personal shots, she was the only one who would steer away from the lens of the camera. The only time she requested to take a photo of her was when she was wearing her school attire and the new trekking suit we bought for them.

Gosh, they were really happy with their new school shirt. At last they were able to go for exercise during school hours! And Im glad we could make Binita so happy. She really loves going to school and takes pride in it.

Binita exluded an air of mystery, mixed with a tinge of sorrow. We do not know what happened to her family or how ended in the home. Some things are better left unsaid. While we were at the home, we just wanted to bring to these children as much joy and hope as we could.

Being the oldest girl, she is also the pillar of support for the girls. She is their big sister and the girls respect her a lot. I have no qualms about giving her instructions because I know she will relay them and take really good care of all the younger girls.

Take care Binita and continue to pass your exams with good colours. Im sure you would emerge a better person amongst the hardship.