AN EXPERIENCE WORTH SHARING

School is quite interesting, especially if you are staying in a residential one. The pleasure of conducting events and participating in programs with the challenge of keeping a strong grip on your academics is quite appealing. Later, during school breaks, you sorely start missing the thrill of all of it. And, then, you feel the need to do something productive, challenging, enriching, and satisfying. I have been involved in countless community service programs here in Caldwell College, and it gives me deep pleasure to help those in need. My experiences have been much rewarding for me and I believe that my endeavors have also made significant impacts on others’ lives.  

I come from Nepal, a country that shelters a larger part of its population in lower standards of living amidst startling economic hardship. Also, the weakening economy of Nepal, crippled by numerous strikes and “Bandhs” (closures), corruption and instable government doesn’t help either. Brought up in the light of such surrounding lives, I am well aware about this dire situation and I reluctantly have to accept what I've experienced throughout the years when I learned about those dreary conditions people closer to me must face.

On the contrary, with all these opportunities that I have access to here in United States, I am living a life that everyone wishes to have, at least for the better.  However, this has not filled me with pride and a sense of achievement that everybody thinks one gets when raised above others with regards to living standard but instead there had been a sense of guilt that was killing me, slowly, and asking me to bring a change to my place and make a difference in my country.

I had no idea what I wanted to do. After days of consultations with my friends about the possible options that can significantly help to reduce poverty in my country, I finally set my mind. One of my friends from high school in Nepal brought this amazing idea of helping his own community that has been slowly shifting from nomadic lifestyle towards a more settled one. He suggested that I bring all resources together and teach the community to start poultry farming, since forest is the only source of their food and this doesn’t suffice their needs. Due to their lack of income source and the difficult terrain they live in, their access to the markets is painfully miserable. Allowing them to self-sustain through a reliable process such as poultry farming (they already have some knowledge about raising chickens) will certainly prove to be an insightful method in empowering them in the long run.

This resolution incited me to make concrete plans for the project, and the start would only mean that I needed to arrange a fundraiser. I started drafting out the proposal and circulated them in various departments. To my amazement, much-needed funds and moral support poured in a matter of few days. I will never forget how anxious I had become before spreading the word out.

There were times when I didn’t know what I was doing and when I almost gave up on the project. But the positivity that floats in the Caldwell College’s premises has always groomed me in a way that strengthens my soul to set out for all endeavors. The inspiration for this project was no different in that matter. All the faculty members and my friends lifted my spirit with their encouragement and support. Everything was coming together in place, and one day, I was set to fly to Nepal to visit my home and get my plans into action.

Yet, no matter how much the enthusiasm I felt for this work, organizing this massive campaign was not an easy task. I used to get up very early during those cold winter mornings and walk for hours uphill and downhill, explaining to people about the campaign. Once on the field, I would immediately start work. And on top of that, I had to take utmost care to ensure that the project ran smoothly and fairly. To attain success that I so craved for, I could not afford any slip-ups.

On contrary the work I did during the project  was in no way comparable to what I did before in preparation of the project. One of my main hurdles was getting together the funds necessary 
for the project. 

I remember the times when I  trailed sponsors from door to door not only  during my breaks, but also while school was  running. It was difficult for me to make some  people believe that I was really trying to conduct “Poultry Farming” in my country Nepal. In the  process, I never knew how all these circumstances would teach me loads about the  differences between idealism and pragmatism, expectation and reality.

In the end, I am proud to say that I did break the “poverty line” a little. I am even happier to report that my friends still remember me. I know this because they have frequently sent me cards back home and came to visit me in Kathmandu after a seven-hour walk followed by a five-hour bus ride. Overall, my time with “Self Sustaining Campaign” was quite an interesting and enriching experience for me and I believe it has been more for those people in the mountains. I completed two editions of the project quite successfully and take pride in noting that I actually enjoyed staying in that remote village during that winter break. Apart from all the service I did like habitat for humanity, Midnight Run and tutoring in other vacations, the organization of “Self Sustaining Campaign” really stands above all because taking it to a completion was productive, challenging, enriching and satisfying.