Made for Heaven

Chapter VIII

Telepathic Relationship with the Family

Giving halt to our relationship does not mean that I will limit my contact with her family members. My bondage with her family members will remain unless deaths do us part. I meet her parents every time I go to Thimphu. Though I may not have anything to offer, yet I never failed to meet them. I get chance to meet my own parents not before three years, but I met them once every year. In fact they have become more than my parents. Every time I went to meet them, I made it a point to spend a night with them wherever they were. I have slept with them in their meditation hut. I spent time with them in a secluded place. It has been a practice and it will happen forever.

Rimpochhe, their Godly Son, has become my own Guru. Of course, I have not taken any religious lesson from him till now, still I consider him as my personal Guru. I am waiting for a time to sit below his golden throne, prostrate under his feet and hear some words of wisdom so that I can practice in the rest of my life. I make it a point to visit his Holiness once every year. I assured Him also that I would come to Him once every year. I consider Him above anything-my family, love and wealth.

I keep telling my wife that after my two elder children’s graduation I am going to lead a pious and secluded life much away from them. It is sounding like a mere joke to them but I mean it. One day, I am leaving everything behind and going to seek refuge under Almighty. I have learnt that life, wealth and comfort of this world are meaningless. I have also learnt that we are sent here to do well and think good. I must fulfill that greater mission of ours. I must reach Almighty through my Guru, Rimpochhe. When His Holiness was of two years of age, He used to command His father and me to come to see him wherever he be in future. I cannot forget that. By that He might have meant to remind me to take refuge in Almighty.

As of now, I have very good rapport with His Holiness. Every time I visit Him, He used to find time to converse with me. I do not want to spoil this relationship. This is one reason why I have decided to stop my relationship with Tashi Dema. I reserve our love, if there is at all between us, for heaven!                         

             

Eyes that See Difference

I cannot see and imagine how mesmerized and perturbed the man in eighties would be, seeing the mark changes in various natural phenomena. Comparatively, I must say, I have seen the world just half of what a man in eighties would have seen. Even so, in my late thirties, I cannot recount everything that I saw. It does not in any account point out at my short memory. It is only because I have been witness to thousands of changes flashing over me. However, I am taken hostage by a few striking moments. I cannot afford to conceal it. I shall reveal the whole accounts through the following paragraphs.

Gone are the days where we used to see everything green, pleasant and perfect. I get heart ache when I think of all those glorious moments. It is disturbing to learn about drastic climatic change in the recent years. It has become synonymous with the mood of a person. Who can predict how a mood of a person would be? It would prove the one predicting it to be foolish. It is unpredictable. Sunshine in the mornings could not be expected to glorify the azure sky till evening. By noon, clear sky gets filled with dark cumulous clouds, tranquil surrounding gets distracted by reverberation of lightning and thunder, dry land made slippery by rain water, empty gorges made invisible by flash flood, stable land made prone to erosion and landslides. Winter becoming warm, early summer unusually cold and snowy, and untimely excessive rain-are the serious disorder we are compelled to witness.

Natural calamities are other moody, fickle-minded, unpredictable phenomena. It comes and disappears taking lives with it. If we switch our TV set to news channels, we cannot keep our ears shut from hearing the news of mass destruction to both human and buildings and eyes closed from seeing the sight of destruction and grieving families of the victims. As many times you watch news, you would catch that many glimpses of painful sight. In addition, we hear of aplenty calamities which were not much heard. Frequency of its occurrence has become rampant. Earthquake, tsunami, landslides, flashfloods, wildfires, windstorm, heavy snowfall, and extreme radiation of sun rays sufficient enough to kill people and animals have become the talk of the day. It is not the talk of a particular place; it has become the common topic of discussion throughout the world. Many international bodies came together several times in several places like Brazil, Copenhagen, New Delhi and even in Thimphu to address this climate change. But because of the greed of human beings, none of it ever reached matured consensus. Developed worlds came with their philosophies and developing world came up with their own philosophies. In essence, each one of them asserted the points that may satisfy their need and greed.

Day by day, people become more desirous. If it is for them to get, they would not mind planting bombs, destroying properties and taking precious lives. Family members do not mind breaking family vows, family prayers and family bonds. Worst example of this is son and father fighting a case in the court of law. This is the height of the worst thing in the world. Where is the existence of tha-damtse lay-jungdey then? What can we say about friendship? Does anybody value friendship? If there is no family bondage, I do not think there is bondage among friends.  I respect exception. My present opinion is not to offend any particular person. I have written this to draw thoughts from both types of readers.

Driglamnamzha, the Bhutanese etiquette, which was once deeply rooted in every citizen, is fast eroding. It has, if I may say, reached the last stage of its course. Our unique ghos and kiras became humble refugee in the office-goers during office hours and school families during school hours. Others wear it under compulsion. A few others may be there who enjoys wearing it. I am not overlooking them. In my ensuing words too, I have not forgotten an exceptions. Subordinate respecting their heads was once sacredly regarded. Now, this treatment is dwindling. Subordinates, may be out of inquisitiveness, do not hesitate to question heads though they know coherently what actually is the crux of the matter. Many heads, in turn treat subordinates with contempt. Both indulge in business where both will not have gain. Little bargain, keeping egos aside, would make both winners. I do not enjoy movies. I feel the life movies that I watch far surpass the fictitious movies screened in the halls. Mayan civilization talked of apocalypse. I feel they were right in one way. Sooner or later, I feel, my mind’s compass is pointing towards the direction pointed out by them. If there is no respect between son and father, teacher and taught, and heads and subordinates, how we can save our earth. Our precious time would be consumed in a race for supremacy.

Patriotism, I may be lope-sided to comment, but I feel people get insufficient time to ponder upon this indispensable topic. They are engrossed in serious business, that multiply their trade partners, bombard existing wealth, design thoughts that ensures their living and others’ extinction, and invention of rocket that can penetrate through the layers of atmosphere to Mars (our dream world).I only hear the receding sound of people talking of patriotism. If asked, I am sure, people willing to die for country would have become less numerous. If good values erode at this alarming rate, a time may come, sooner than expected, I fear, that a soldier may question why he should go for war. Isn’t it something that requires immediate attention?

No matter what emergencies withhold our attention, we must come together to rescue all the old values, that kept our society mutually bound and safe together, from sliding down the drains. We are in the transitional period where we see changes taking place. We are presently in the right location from where we can easily reach those values. Should we try to retrieve, revive our old good values, this is the right time. Once it merges with the sea where the values of other countries have inundated, I see very less chance of retrieval. Lamenting then would seem like crying over spilt milk!

If we feel, we are being punished for sins accumulated over years; let us repent, undergo penance, try to cleanse it by appeasing God. Let us join hands of piety in our attempt to hold the wrath and retribution of Gods against mankind. It is never too late to begin good work!    

                               

  

   

Referee Report (Opinion of Teacher)

I am Yonten Jamtsho, principal of Baylling Higher Secondary School. It is my fifteenth year working under the Ministry of Education, Bhutan. In my service to my nation in the capacity of teacher, assistant principal and currently principal, and working in different schools, I have had opportunity to deal with different students with different dispositions. It is my pleasure to note here that Mr. Kinzang Chophel was very unique. He was brilliant, had sense of competitions and had enthusiasm in both academic and non-academic arenas. While he was studying in my school, he was one of the fast learners, highly responsive and forward looking.

He was a highly sociable student. His unprecedented oratory skills earned him lots of admiration from both teaching faculty and student body. I feel that if his oratory skill is sharpened constantly, it can cut through any fortified structure of organization to elevate himself to a comfortable revolving chair. I saw his oratory skill to be his greatest strength. In many literary and co-curricular activities, on different occasions, he bagged prizes, certificates and earned respect for our school.

The School Management Team (SMT) and I had seen leadership quality in him especially in the literary area. We sat together and unanimously elected him as our school’s literary custodian in the 1998 academic session. During his two years’ tenure as custodian, he had organized many literary activities like debates, quizzes, extempore speeches, declamations and poster competitions. It was done through his own initiatives. He had motivated his friends to take part, strengthened our programs and led our school’s team to victory against students from other schools. We have many trophies here which were won during his custodianship. We wish to print the names of students who bring home trophies from abroad now. But, I regret to learn that we did not have such thought then.

It is these reasons that made me consider Mr. Kinzang Chophel as a unique student. It may not be impossible, but it is difficult to produce student like him who had vested qualities of the best student. He is a deserving person. I am sure he can take up any responsibility he is entrusted with. He is a voracious reader. He will have no problem pursuing his higher studies in any university of the world.

I wish him good luck! 

Note: This is written on the request of my brother Kinzang Chophel.              

May 2nd, 2013

It was a moment of truth, expression of joy, endowment of boundless happiness. It was time where teachers and students come together to pay tribute to our Visionary, Late His majesty Third king Jigme Dorji Wangchuk. It was time where students of past and present come together to meet their teachers whom they truly believe to be their light giver. It was time where both teachers and students express and understand each other deeply. It was time when all inmates wear mask of happiness on their faces. It was May 2nd, Teachers' Day Celebration. 2nd May 2013 was truly memorable. Programs were impressive, fantastic, and marvelous. The way it was organized by students revealed that it was done through heart. I saw their true love for us. Images flash in front of my eyes and voices, musics reverberate in me even today. Seems like it will remain so till the end of time.

What is Baylling for?

Baylling is a dream school. Though dreamers are unaware, dream appears to them. In the like manner, the school like Baylling was born. Since its inception in 2004, Baylling has been a refinery to many fortunate aspirant leaders. The mixed raw materials of good, mediocre and without exception bad or students, who could not discover their talents, joined our school. No matter what the raw materials were, they have been put to refinery and steered it appropriately until they came out in the form of polished products. Many students, who came here without any goal initially, graduated from Baylling HSS gaining mental maturity, wholly aware of their talents, and as custodian of their own destiny. It is a dream, even to its inmates, to hear Baylling reverberating far and wide despite being literally tender in age.

The recent school ranking, by our Ministry, that made us see our school in the first tenth position gave natural and boundless flow of joy through the veins of every Baylling family. This is not the first time. We are not surprised. The pleasure and joy that filled our state today is because of the fact that we have got an opportunity to see our school in the list of top ten schools consecutively for many years. We feel that the ordeal we are put to is passed without doubt. To tell the truth, we have reached the stage where we can be considered ‘indomitable’. This word may make readers deduce that we are satisfied with our performance. Experience tells us that once we reach satisfaction level, our enthusiasm for performance declines. Should anyone be engulfed with this notion, we must contradict it by asserting that we are not satisfied. Rather we believe, our fresh stride measuring new progress, as just a beginning. Like Alfred Tennyson, we feel ‘all experiences as an arch where through gleams that untraveled world, whose margin fades forever and forever when we move’. We are aware that we have greater challenges ahead: challenge to retain same position, challenge to meet expectations, and challenge to provide good guidance to students.

But we stand firm. No topic of impossibility, if there is at all, will dissuade us from seeking our pursued dreams. We have high dreams. We encourage our members to dream high and crave to attend it. The recent announcement of early mid-term break by MoE did give us little time to think, but altogether we are not unprepared. Early or late does not make any difference to us.  We are prepared for quality performance anytime. We provide forum to students to authenticate their learning with practical experience. We experiment, do and redo matters to exhume facts. We explore and provide new arenas for learning and discovery. This is always our top priority and will remain so.

We may not be able to produce great brain like Albert Einstein, ever Physicist like Sir Isaac Newton, courageous astronaut like Neil Armstrong, greatest pure mathematician like Pythagoras, etc. now and in the near future. However, no matter how exhausted we become, what sacrifices we may have to make in our endeavour, we will never rest until we produce an individual: who nurtures and nourishes unparallel admiration for the work of great human beings, who harbours an inspiration that inspired the nerves of all undisputed great men and who exudes willingness to pursue the footpaths of great discoverers.

 These are Baylling’s pledges!          

       

International Day of Happiness

We were given a day off on 20^th March 2013 to observe International Day of Happiness. As our proposal which we submitted last year could not get through, we did not have any idea to celebrate a Day of Happiness in our school. Fortunately, we were invited by Dzongkhag Administration, Trashiyangtse to join them in the walk to join international communities in celebrating the First Historic Day of Happiness.

 The walk we had here had multi purposes. Dasho Dzongda, in his culminating speech at Chorten Kora said that through walk we had not only joined international communities but also opened the eco-tourist foot trails for visitors (tourists) from outside as well as for the families of Trashiyangtse. Any Bhutanese or non-Bhutanese, be it the residents of Trashiyangtse or from outside, can come with their lovely families and enjoy their walk through that trails. The trails, on the day we walked, were serene with fresh air endowed with the bountiful beauty of assorted colours. The two eco-tourist foot trials were identified by Dzongkhag Forest Office last year.

Divided into two groups, walk through trails was started at 9.30 am. One group was led by Dasho Dzongda while the other was led by Dasho Dzongrab. Dasho Dzongda’s group started their walk from Tshar Zam point whereas Dasho Dzongrb’s group started from Baylling point. Both the groups were joined by Dzongkhag Officials, teachers and students, business community and village representatives. During the walk, age and gender cast no hindrance.  It was absolutely irresolute. The duration of walk was about six hours. However, it wasn’t tiring. While setting off our journey, many dreaded that some may have to use walking stick and walk with three limbs like old people and some may have to crawl exactly like small baby. But, in the midst of exaltation and jubilation, let alone facing difficulties, we did not even know how the walk came to an end. We sang in groups; each group trying to dominate over the other by singing with full throated ease. We chatted with whom we never did, we made ourselves known to strangers, and little known persons became great acquaintances. Hikers had a talk on wide range of topics; serene atmosphere, ideal place for family recreation, natural footpaths, range of flora, and so on. ‘We will come back again next time’ was an aspiration expressed by many hikers as they had very less time to enjoy scenic beauty because they felt compelled to move along with other groups.

A group led by Dasho Dzongrab had a brief break at Donag Chholing Goempa. Everybody was amazed to see a lhakhang of historical importance lying majestically on the pinnacle of a small hill. Had it not been for that occasion, many of us would not have been aware of the existence of that place. On reaching the courtyard of lhakhang, we relieved ourselves of our back pack and had gone inside lhakhang to prostrate and to make our wish in presence of its relics. Besides many, there were two magnificent principal relics-a statue of Shaka Muni (Lord Buddha) and a small thumb-size statue of Tertoen Lethro Lingpa. Legend has it that when once the lhakhang caught fire, statue of Tertoen Lethro Lingpa was seen seated on top of a cypress tree which lies next to the lhakhang.   

At around 12.30 pm, we had our lunch together in a big circle. We felt that we were a big happy family. We danced to the tune of our satisfaction and headed our journey backward. Since we had to descend downhill, we were kidding among ourselves that we would know who had strong patella. Fortunately, no one complained of any unease. Just like climbing uphill, everybody got down singing, chatting and sharing experiences. The day was really memorable. 20^th March 2013 has lighted the candle of peace and happiness all over Yangtse and across all sections of people. I pray that this light never vanishes from this earth.

Long Live His Majesty Fourth Druk Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuk who propounded the idea of Gross National Happiness in Bhutan and whose idea has now radiated the light of peace and happiness to the whole world. We have joined international communities in celebrating International Day of Happiness in grandeur. May peace and happiness prevail!                        

School Foundation Day, 2013

Sunday, 10^th March 2013 was celebrated as School Foundation Day.  With the turn of March 2013, Baylling HSS has become 9 years old. It came into being in 2004.

On this occasion, principal reminded students about the present renowned state of Baylling HSS. He reminded students to prepare to work hard to live up to the expectations: face new challenges, make sacrifices, and enable school to move forward bringing acceptable innovations. In the process of dynamism, criticism of various natures from different angles may be heard. Principal also reminded students to prepare to face criticism and to convert it into potential energy for positive change.

Foundation Day was observed as thanksgiving day, an expression of gratitude to different predecessors. Principal remembered and thanked former principal, Mr. Phuntsho Wangdi for laying good foundation, setting positive culture and for making conditions conducive for imparting different kinds of education. Principal too thanked former VP, teachers and students for working day and night, and in rain and shine building school of grandeur. All of them are revered as founding fathers.

With the expectations to see the sun of peace, prosperity, good health and untainted academic progress perpetually shining over Baylling, all programmes on that day started by making unanimous prayers and lighting hundred butter lamps.

Our new vice principal, Mr. Choki Dorji, who stepped into our territory on 9^th evening, on transfer from Peljorling HSS was presented and introduced to whole school family as priceless gift on the foundation occasion by principal. He graced the Return Variety Show by new comers, set aside especially for that occasion.

Foundation Day, 10^th March 2013 became ever more memorable in the history of Baylling HSS.