My last day at the school went by in a blur. I lost myself while playing with the kids at break the day before they went on holiday to celebrate the founder of Nepal. I walked into class five, consisting of students from 11-13, and students Kritan and Kritish started hopping up and down, asking to play the human knot game. I was beyond thrilled they were all so excited, and I said we could play when we finished our science and math lessons. It was really wonderful when I was checking the kids' math homework from the day before, because all of them were so eager to see what they could improve on. We were learning about triangular prisms, and one boy, Nitish, was struggling with the concept. His classmate Sajaan noticed and started explaining to him in Nepali how to solve the equation and set it up in a way that would help Nitish understand it better. 

My last day at the school went by in a blur. I lost myself while playing with the kids at break the day before they went on holiday to celebrate the founder of Nepal. I walked into class five, consisting of students from 11-13, and students Kritan and Kritish started hopping up and down, asking to play the human knot game. I was beyond thrilled they were all so excited, and I said we could play when we finished our science and math lessons. 

It was wonderful when I was checking the kids' math homework from the day before, because all of them were so eager to see what they could improve on. We were learning about triangular prisms, and one boy, Nitish, was struggling with the concept. His classmate Sajaan noticed, and started explaining to him in Nepali how to solve the equation and set it up in a way that would help Nitish understand it better. 

I ended the lesson by giving each of the kids little notecards thanking them for letting me come and learn from them for the past few days. They all got really quiet and started to help each other sound out each word. They started to ask me for paper, too, and made their own notecards for me by using a couple words from my card to them, as well as the verbs they already knew. One little boy, Prashanna, even gave me a self-portrait of himself drawn like a superhero in a comic. This act of gratitude reminded me in class of our discussion of ego, and how gratitude cuts it off at its roots. These students displayed humility throughout our lessons, accepting and giving help freely, and were not afraid to make mistakes in their learning process. This lack of ego and trying to be the best made the classroom environment feel incredibly safe, and I know realize it is because they have a gratitude practice. I watched over the few days as they thanked teacher and other students, and always greeted each other with a bow of honor. They were practicing showing others they are important, and this translated to the students being more able to be themselves and give and receive compassion more freely. We had a giant group hug before lunch, and I stayed inside with Ankit, who vlogged his lunch time from my phone as I braided Sudikchya’s hair. 

Afterward, we all went outside to play and Sudykcha, Ankit, and a few other kids from class 5 joined the younger kids to create a little dance group. We even had a dance competition with the famous song from RRR, Naacho Naacho. We had to dance the whole song (almost four minutes) while kicking one leg back and forth while hopping on the other. It came down to three students before Ankit won, but we were all holding our achy legs after. As the kiddos started to get picked up for their holiday break, one of the teachers called myself and my fellow classmates Christian and Jonathan into the teachers lounge. They chatted with us and gave us the most delicious tea, and even brought us momos from down the street! This delicious dish has become a staple in our diet here in Nepal, and it was so incredibly generous of the teachers to pitch in and get us this meal as a thank you for us working with the students. The momo's were some of the best I’ve had, and we ate and chatted with the teachers for another half hour before heading over to Principal Sonam’s house to cook a Nepalese dish with her.

Myself, Jonathan and Christian walked back to Sonam’s home with her and her two children, Christima and Kritan. We washed our hands and started to boil some potatoes and these little crackers that expanded into crunchy spheres. She took the potatoes off the stove, we peeled and mashed them, mixed in some beans and spices, and were ready to eat! Sonam showed us how to crack the spheres and put some of the potato mash inside. It was so incredibly delicious, and we filled up on that meal of Aloo Chop with her and her children while cracking jokes and learning more about her family and her husband who works as a secretary in Qatar. Upon leaving, she gave us each a scarf, a bag of tea, and a bar of hand soap. She hugged all of us and made sure to keep in touch with us via email. Her hospitality and compassion is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced and I am so blessed to have met someone as warm hearted as she. This interaction with the kids at Shree Shamik and Sonam have left a lasting imprint for me and will stay with me throughout my own work with kids as I become a teacher. 

The children and Sonam have shown me what authentic compassion looks like, and I am determined to practice their selflessness in my communities going forward. It is an uplifting and quite freeing experience to be surrounded by a community who has taken on acceptance and welcoming of others as an intrinsic part of their culture. I encourage all of our readers to look into traveling to this country, and if you are unable too, the Buddhist loving-kindness meditations are a great first step to becoming more compassionate with yourself and others. This community lived by Phakchok Rinpoche’s words, “Loving kindness is the intention and capacity to bring joy and happiness to oneself or other persons” (Awakening Dignity 102). They students and teachers at the Shree Shamik Basic School treated themselves and others with the utmost respect and compassion. Phakchok explains our inner happiness comes from giving compassion to others, and if we have a strong sense of love for others we can love ourselves more openly. This concept was so strange to me, because I always wondered how we can give something we don’t have. However, after working with some of the most compassionate persons I have ever met and seeing Rinpoche’s teachings come to life, I now understand that we will always have compassion. It is intrinsically part of us to show ourselves and others how much we value and respect each other through compassion. I will always be grateful for my amazing memories with all these amazing people I have gotten to connect with on my travel to Nepal.