My Own Thoughts

“Toothache – the mention of it kills me, but there is no escape for me” I say it. If women say labour is greatest pain, toothache is not far. For those men who don’t respect the pain the women endure during giving a child birth, a man should experience the toothache. The pain one have to bear during toothache is equivalent to labour. It makes every sense in body go numb and the brain and the blood vessels are most attacked. In middle of pain, I contemplate getting rid of it but then I worry I have only numbered teeth in my mouth. I choose stomachache rather but I wonder if only there is choice over what pain one must go through. Those who have the taste of it will agree me. Like any child, I was born with 32 teethes. My milk teeth went out to be replaced with fresh 32 teethes. But come the age of 12, bacteria chose to feed and devour my teeth. In middle of the child’s play, I would suddenly go lethargic and this is because the pain in my teeth bothering me. I would spoil the climax...

Looking at the pristine forest, with varied flora and fauna that accompanied us the entire four days expedition, I remained complacent that Bhutan authentically deserved “Earth Champion Award”. The environment conservation is one among the four pillars of the Gross National Happiness and is also clearly enshrined in the Constitution of Bhutan. The National Policy of preserving forest coverage of 60% of its land coverage for all time to come is a dream almost a reality. The unperturbed nature, all in its purest form charmed me no less. There is no denying that the forest can be maintained intact if there exist such virgin forest even outside the protected area system and the biological corridors. We were almost to the top of the ridge. The sun is already high in the sky. We rested for the lunch (packed one) in the clearings at the top of the ridge. No sooner we reached the mountain, the atmosphere buzzed. We have left the sounds of trucks and cars far behind and it should not be audib...

He has a tale to tell about his losing of hairs. “It was the time when I was in Sherubtse,” he started his story. “I joined the group on might hunting in the villages. I was then having good hairs. When our attempts turned out futile in almost five houses we tried, I got infuriated and turned to college. On the way, we dropped by the bar and enjoy the midnight drinks. One of my friends got really out and couldn’t walk. I had to carry him to the hostel. When still at my back, when his belly was pressed between his own weight and my back, he poured down all his liqud into my head. I coildn’t stand the stinging of his puking that I smelt alcohol. Once back in the college hostel, I wanted to run some cold water shower but the tapes ran dry. Then I opted for the last alternatives, using the only liquid we had. We were carrying a bottle of beers each and I washed the face with the beer to do away the smell. The alcoholic chemicals contents reacted with the hairs and soon I realized I am losi...

Knowing that we have long journey ahead, we prepared to depart early. Safely tucked in the rug sack were the toiletries, few pants and shirts, a gho and other clothing and ofcourse the pack lunch, we headed into the destiny unknown. We didn’t know how long our legs could carry, before the nightfall but we moved with the commitment that we must keep walking till we attain the destination. Leaving all the glory of the urban delights, we finally bade goodbye to it even if it’s for a month. We left behind the whizzing cars, the brightness of electricity, the majestic concrete buildings towering so boldly, the well bituminized highways, the sounds and melodies of Cable Television, the sweet ringtones of cell phone, the charm of internets, the inviting groceries and restaurants and other amenities of the metropolitan. We thought we will miss them. We headed into the jungle, the trails infested with leeches in summer, (we were lucky that we embarked on tour in winter), the giants Alnus ne...

All are not born equal. It is rightly said that being even able to be born as human is like a blind tortoise hitting the hole of the yoke in floating ocean, a tortoise that emerges once to the surface in million years. And sometime that too happens to be one bad hit. This is about the man who is in late thirties yet crawling like a few months old baby. Goshing, is a fairly remote place, a day walk from Panbang in Zhemgang. In the heart of the village is a family who’s first born came out surprisingly as a handicapped boy. In the words of his parents, he was born in a hut which served as farm guard house. In one summer night, the couple was out in the field guarding their field from the wild animals. Amongst the shouting and cries to drive out the attackers, a couple gave birth to a baby boy who turned out to be abnormal. He grew up like any normal boy. But he didn’t stand up the time he was of the age to walk and he didn’t even attempt to utter the word to learn to speak. However,...