Home: Kalanki, Kathmandu, Bagmati

Education: B.Sc. (Nursing), Rajiv Gandhi University of Health and Sciences, India

When I started working in a hospital in Bangalore, it was more challenging than I thought it would be. The main problem was communication. People over there hardly spoke in English or Hindi. They preferred their local language Kannada. Even duty police who came for MLC cases didn’t speak Hindi or English. Not only them, most staff members of the hospital also spoke only in their local language. Patients used to come with different health problems and they shared about their problems in Kannada. I felt bad when they spoke to me of their pain but I couldn’t help them just because I didn’t understand their language.

But I didn’t sit quietly. I asked for help from my colleagues. I started to learn the words which were spoken frequently in the hospital. Slowly I started to speak with staff and then patients in Kannada though I couldn’t do it perfectly. I started using gestures more than words to communicate. Some patients used to laugh at me but most of them appreciated my attempt at learning and the way of explaining. During my stay there, I met different people from different cultures who made me feel who I am. They used to praise us saying we came far from home and did independent job, struggling without parents around and being comfortable in new environment, new people. However, I wanted to do more than what I was doing there. But the question was, how?

That’s why I came back to Nepal. Initially I thought of joining a hospital and work as a staff nurse. Although I got a job I couldn’t join there because I didn’t want to be confined as a nurse. By then, I had started giving tuitions to help kids in their studies. I came to know of TFN through Facebook. The more I read about it, the more I wanted to join the movement. I wanted to help kids with their education in rural areas.

Even though my mother was a housewife, she has always encouraged me to do more. It’s her encouragement that helped me do well not only in my studies to become a successful nurse but also in extra-curricular activities like basketball, table tennis, badminton and dance. Her support has made me feel supported, stronger and independent, and I will be imparting these values in my students during my fellowship.