Ten
years ago, Kesang left everything behind and headed to the city of dreams, the
United States of America. With a concrete plan in his mind he went off with a
dream to earn Nu. 5 lakhs. He had everything set of to what he would do with
the targeted sum he were to earn. He initially planned to work only for three
years and come back home to make something out of himself.
This
year, it is his tenth year at New York and he gives himself a laugh on
recalling his dreams during the initial stages of his stay at the city. He
notes life can’t always move on the pace as we want it to and just like he is
still stuck there, at times our destiny seems pointless to where it is headed.
Money,
Kesang believes should not be the ultimate goal because the more we earn, the
more we spend. There is a point to be noted. Having started his career from
scratch in what seemed like an alien land when he first put his foot away from
his village at Trashigang, Kesang started off as a butler. With days added onto
make years, today he is one of the manager at a five star hotel in the food and
beverages department. Kesang currently lives in the Bahamas and has plans to
return to Bhutan but with no idea when, he responds with the term ‘soon’
Let
us now move onto another common destination for the Bhutanese, Australia. It
has become a trend in our society for one to say that they are leaving for
Australia and with their repeated statement, Australia now seem like a next
door neighbor. Not to forget social media has been a powerful weapon to make
this world a global village.
Sonam
(name changed for confidentiality) like many other in our society left her
profession as a teacher in Bhutan because with many mouths to feed, her income
was not able to support her large family. The visa approval to Australia for
her master’s degree mustered in her the idea that things were going to change
at home with the powerful currency she believed she was going to earn. The
wings of the dragon reached her many miles away from home and it was the days
that followed made her realize leaving abroad with a dream comes with a price. Desperate
to give the curious ears at home a positive answer, Sonam says she went door to
door looking for a job and that in a way was no less than a beggar one often
come to us in desperate need for some pennies.
On the contrary there are some people placing their roots and for them they seldom have the thought to come back home. What more do we need in this universe than a family beside you. Tshering, who is a photographer lives happily at New York City with whole of his family. Home is where the heart is and though he claims to miss the aura of a homeland he has well-adjusted to a place which has provided shelter for him and his family.
There
is no such thing as the majority of us living here and gaining the ultimate
pursuit of happiness against many others scattered around the world or to term
them the minorities because we are bonded by one common thing. That one thing
is ‘culture’.
You may have to go for the
food there but your taste buds will always dance to the tune of the home food.
You may think you are used to foreign languages but an unexpected hear of your mother
tongue will always make you wear a genuine smile. You may think you will not
fit in their land with your traditional attire but you will be eagerly waiting
for occasions when you can proudly and comfortably wear your traditional
clothes. And finally you may get attracted to people from their land but deep
within you are still looking and hoping for that someone special from home
because you share the same emotions.
While
Kesang spends his leisure time in the embraces of the beautiful beach at
Bahamas, he also awkwardly confesses he would like to be able to share such
moments with someone from home. As for Sonam, she suffered quite a hurdle but
her first year of stay in Australia not only helped her clear off her debts but
she has some savings too. Tshering is one of the most active social network
users and if one is to claim a positive bloggers he sure is. His active updates
on life away at the other part of the world and the endless support he renders
for national events at home wants us to applaud him for such spirits.
For
Bhutanese, our society has always been intact and when one suffer the other
cry and vice versa. Whether one feeds themselves on the grass at home or depends
on the foreign land, we will always share that bond and that pride in being the
sons and daughters of Palden Drukpa and it is this spirit that makes it easier
for other races to discover we are from the land of Happiness, from the GNH
country.
