An End to an Era

If you are reading this blog for the first time, please consider backing up the the beginning. The very beginning if time allows it. Stories are always richer when told from where they first started.

       With my Fulbright experience officially concluded, I've had a lot of time to reflect, and a lot of time to continue sharing all that Nepal has meant to me.
         I characterize my experience by many things; by the 9-month period it lasted, by my officially grant duties of teaching English in a rural Nepali government school, by the culture and family that shaped my time there. It was an era of tea in the mornings and York Mints and Smarties at night if I still had any left to fish out of my bag; of Dahl Bhat eaten with my hands; of skeptically considering foods and then shrugging my shoulders and simply crossing my fingers with the hope that it wouldn't make me sick.

             It was an era of entering bare concrete classrooms in the arms of first and second grade students who had literally dragged me there (all the while fighting for the privilege to carry my school bag and hang it on the door knob); of my student Sanju crying "Miss, miss!" in her high-pitched voice, until she got my attention and could ramble off, in her six-year-old way, some new story that she'd been waiting all morning to share. An era of experiencing the indescribable happiness of placing a crayon in a child's hand. 

         It was an era of having a little sister and a newborn baby brother for the first time. Of loving every time a neighbor questioned in amazement how I'd managed to learn Nepali in such a short amount of time; An era of bus rides crammed next to locals, where I was either straddling a goat or handed a stranger's child to rest on my lap. An era of photocopies and lamination. An era of handing out chocolate and activity books and taking deep breathes in the thick of chaos. An era of loving new things, of tremendous learning curves, of humbling beginnings. 

This is Nepal. This is my Nepal. And I wouldn't have had it any other way. 

         Thank you for taking each step with me, for caring, and for spreading my words across the world. I'm so grateful to have had the opportunity to share Nepal. These pages allowed me to tell my stories to friends and family with much more clarity and richness. It allowed me to share with those who weren't here to hear them when I returned. For that, I'll be forever grateful. 

I hope you too find a way to share your stories. Please don't hesitate to contact me in person. I'm always happy to share more, to hear your stories, and to continue expanding our connections in this great big world. 

Namaste,

    Lisa

*This blog is dedicated to two of my biggest fans - two individuals who always encouraged me to share my stories, and who shared their stories with me. 

R.I.P. Leslie Schroeder

R.I.P. Grandpa Chuck Stelling