CILLA KHATRY
Until a few years ago, he was a chubby kid who would wail and throw tantrums if his wishes weren’t met or even if he lost in a friendly match of badminton. [break]
Being a single child ensured undivided attention from his parents, and thus to say he was pampered would be an understatement. Then, his mother succumbed to cancer after battling it for years, forcing him to grow up almost overnight.
Now the chubby, temperamental and spoilt child is gone and in his place is a young man who I, between you and me, refuse to believe is the same kid who once kicked me on the face because I wouldn’t let him watch an episode of Pokémon, his favorite cartoon at that point of time.
My little brother, who will henceforth be referred to as ‘Bhai’ here has morphed into a handsome and suave young man who is far too wise for his age. I guess, when life brings you face to face with sudden harsh realities, wisdom comes as the most natural byproduct. And that’s what’s happened to Bhai as well.
The boy who once needed to be told to do even the minutest of chores, like putting his used plate in the sink when he was done, now lives in a hostel in Ajmer, India.
Sometimes I used to wonder how he was managing it all and would worry quite a bit: A whole lot, to be frank. But then I figured that someone who has had faced his mother’s death without shedding a single tear in front of all the relatives who had gathered at her demise would be able to take care of everything else life threw his way.
And he hasn’t let me down. From consoling me when his mother, my aunt, passed away to telling me not to cry because we didn’t leave any stones unturned to save her whenever I talked about her in all the time she’s been gone, Bhai has become someone I admire and draw inspiration from.
Had I been in his shoes, I would’ve been so overcome by grief that I wouldn’t have been able to function at all. But he went on to score eighty percent in his SLC exams which was just a year after his mother passed away.
Looking at him now, all grown up and offering me advice when he thinks I’m doing something wrong, I’m amazed by how the equation has changed, and how suddenly, too! Instead of him learning from his elder sister, I’m constantly basing my decisions on something he says.
I’ve come to the stark realization that age doesn’t make you wiser or stronger, and that the younger generation today may seem a bit too precocious for our liking. But it’s perhaps the precociousness that makes them better able to deal with any situation and handle what follows with dignity and grace.
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Making differences, one step at a time
NISTHA RAYAMAJHI
One year back, I was reporting on a conference held on climate change and mountain issues in the capital. On day one of the conference, I was quite impressed to see a group of young enthusiasts from different countries coming together to talk about the issues of climate change and share their passion and motivation to save our planet.
The young participants were already involved in one way or the other in raising awareness about the climate change issues, be it by organizing workshops or by teaching pragmatic ways to work towards a sustainable environment.
The Youth Forum continued for a few days and it was such an enlightening experience as not only did we get to interact with our ideas but came to a conclusion on how we can be a part of bringing about change as well.
Change indeed seems like a big word. But from that workshop I somehow came to think about how, if you work together and put an effort to it, it’s something that’s so possible.
Apart from that, every once in a while you come across many such young people who are making a difference out there and contributing to bring positive changes.
Recently, I interviewed a photographer who said something that struck me. Doing something for your country and loving your country doesn’t mean that you have to be out on the streets protesting.
It’s about contributing in any way you can and putting an effort to make a difference. You can be in any field but if you do your job well then it itself is some sort of contribution.
The ongoing brain drain and how many youth are obliged to leave the country due to lack of opportunities is a common topic of discussion here.
It seems a practical thing as well but one of my friends told me how running away from reality cannot always be the solution. It’s also about changing the situation and creating opportunities for ourselves.
Youth comprises a large population in the country, and if we become the conscious generation who are aware of our responsibilities, then building a reformed society is really feasible. It’s so easy to complain about the chaos, uncertainty and the little that the country offers in terms of even basic things. But we, being the educated generation, can in any little ways help to change things that we don’t think are right.
And, too, we don’t have to do it by taking leaps and bounds, but by taking small steps, one at a time.
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The other stories of brain drain
ASMITA MANANDHAR
The inside stories about young journalists in the newspaper business, especially English ones, is that editors and the management aren’t very convinced that the young scribes will last long. And that hasn’t been proven wrong, either. After a few months of work, they file in their resignation letters, and most of the reasons are for studying abroad.
The long queues at the Ministry of Home Affairs, the overcrowded GRE classes at educational institutes and the growing numbers of manpower companies are some of the few evidences of young people’s choice for their future.
The fact is that many young people are eyeing abroad for studies, opportunities, or a better lifestyle. This phenomenon, a negative one for Nepal, has been discussed in many newspapers, interactions, workshops and seminars for a long time. When they said “brain drain,” I was just a kid.
But really, can this problem be summed up as only brain drain? Nepal is, of course, facing an immense loss of human capital and it’s losing a lot of talented young people. But the young aren’t just taking their technical knowledge or skills with them; they are taking themselves away too.
There has been such huge emphasis on their knowledge and skills that the social impact due to such event is rarely discussed. When the growing trend of infidelity was noticed due to stretched absence of spouses, it was just a plain wipe to a dirty stained window.
In a TV interview, when an NRN couple was asked how much they miss their homeland, the wife had said, “No words can describe the pain. We’ve decided that we’ll come to Pashupatinath Temple’s footsteps when we’re dying.”
My mom was really annoyed by the answer. According to her, it was really hypocritical to come and die in the native country when you couldn’t live with/in it. My uncle, too, was dissatisfied, but for a different reason. He said that the health facilities in developed countries are incomparable to Nepal and that will be felt more during old age. So their chances of coming to Nepal are nil.
My point, exactly! Many of the old couples in Nepal are nowadays just relying on each other. Their grownup children have gone to lands of opportunities to realize their goals. And here, their broken families, without proper healthcare services and in absence of the ones to take care of, are dying miserably and alone.
The cases of reverse brain drain seen in recent years in India and China say that it’s not people’s sentiments but opportunities that play a significant role for such processes. This single statement may prove all of my above arguments futile and hollow. But is compassion less important? I guess it is!
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