Posters Needed!

We stopped for milk tea beneath the flowering tree to rest and take in the view.  Next to the path, a small stone building with several children playing outside caught my attention.  I don't know at what point every child in the world became my own.  Perhaps it was at the birth of my first son.  I just know that when I see children now, I can only see my boys at that age.  'What if that were my child?  What if we were born into this situation?'  These are the questions that are always on my mind.

I have a feeling that JR and I are similar in this way.   We walked over for a closer look.  This building was the school, the post office, and the home of the teacher.  While the children were outside playing games, an older man, who looked like he had just awoken, was inside making tea for himself.  By virtue of his ability to read and write, he was both the teacher and postman.  JR suspected that not much education actually happened in this facility for lack of resources.  The teacher may have tried to teach the fundamentals of reading and writing but not much else.  Clearly, there was no education happening at the moment that we arrived mid-morning on a school day. 

The man was very accommodating, allowing us to photograph his bedroom/office and the classroom and students.

 This is where we stopped to rest.  It didn't look like a restaurant, but they were certainly prepared to take care of the needs of those traveling along the path.

The school and post office was directly in front of us next to the path.

Outside, the children were playing.

Here is the teacher on his bed in his office.

In the corner of his room was his source for heat in the winter time, and his means to cook his food.

My camera provided the light for the photos.  The only other lighting in the school was natural light from the windows.  Here is the teacher's desk.

Look how beautiful these students are.  They posed for the camera and then raced over to see their pictures.

Sometimes at these high altitudes, which can be very dry and cold, I see mothers take the mucous from their child's nose and rub it on the child's cheeks to protect them from getting painfully chapped cheeks.  It makes them look a bit grubby, but there is a reason behind the dirt.

Benches to sit at and tables to write on.  This is very good.

But the condition of the chalk boards, not so good.

And the posters...

Abysmal!

If you are feeling touched, and inspired to help, here is the address.

Write to:
Gonggang Primary School
Gonggang Chilme VDC
Ward No. 6
Dist. Rasuwa
Zone: Bagmati
Nepal

They have no posters, books or teaching materials of any kind.  They may also not have any tape to put up the posters. They do not have the organizational capacity that the other school I am helping has.  In this case there really is no better way of helping.  We can only send a package of materials and cross our fingers that it arrives safely.  These children would certainly be happy if we tried.

I did send a package of printed material to rural Nepal recently.  It was clearly marked 'printed mater' and it arrived safely in about 2 weeks.  I would not send money, or other valuable items for political reasons.  It is also against the law to proselytize in Nepal, so no religious materials please.

If you are teacher, or a parent, or you have some posters or light weight educational books to send,  please do.  It could be life changing.  Feel free to pass the word.

Peace!