The Horseboy's Second Chance. Part 2.

[spindrift]

Here is the link to the first part of this story - please read it....www.anyportinastorm.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=pictures&thread=119&page=1


Continuing the story of 'A Nepali Horseboy's Lost Chance'....I am happy to report that Ishwar, said horseboy, has been found and reunited with his family. Here is a picture of the mother, father, Ishwar and his young brother.



I had been inclined to give up on Ishwar when he ran away from boarding school and joined a circus to work by looking after the animals. My friend, who pays half of Ishwar's expenses with me, had other ideas. She sent a Nepali friend to find Ishwar's family and find out the whereabouts of the boy. I had thought it was a lost cause.

This is Ishwar's story. He had been bullied at school and called a Slumdog; certainly he is of the lowest caste which includes those who care for animals and work clearing rubbish or cesspits. When he couldn't take the bullying any more, he ran off. Our Nepali friend talked to the family whose circumstances had not improved. Mother and father earn a few rupees a day by hauling sand for a building contractor from the deep riverbed at Pokhara. I am told they are both alcoholics and the future is grim for them. Ishwar himself said he would like to return to school but not a boarding school. He chose to go to a government-run day school. It was agreed that he would have an incentive to stay at school to learn his lessons if he did not have to supplement his parents' meagre income, so we chose to pay for the hovel where they now live. We will pay 6 months' in advance twice a year. The first instalment has been given to the landlord.
It's true that this little family live in a Pokhara slum but it's not nearly as bad as the slums of Mumbai.



This is a picture of the interior of the little dwelling (there is only one room, there is no bathroom of course)...



And here is the 'kitchen'...the pot would be boiled on this fire. That's all there is. This is exactly how the poor live in Nepal.

[Deleted]

That is both excellent and sobering news (when one looks at the photos). We have it so easy on this side of the world, even our vagabonds.

[spindrift]

Our Nepali friend, first of all, fed the children. The pretty girl is Ishwar's older sister. She is 16 and works as a cleaner in the town.



He bought all of them some clothes, then took Ishwar to have his hair cut.



Lastly, the children were taken to the schoolmaster who agreed to admit them both. I thought it would be a shame to miss the opportunity of educating the young brother who is at the right age to start school and would otherwise never have a chance.



So now I'd like to emphasize just how little it costs to support a poor Nepali family.

Costs per year.

Rent for the shack (1 room) £72
Ishwar's day school fees £32
Young brother's fees £10

The school fees are inclusive of books.

For just over £100 per year a Nepali family can have the basics of life provided and a roof over their heads. The same £100 in London will buy only one meal for 3 people in a mediocre restaurant.

We will, of course, pay extra during the year for the childrens' clothes and food and also pay for our Nepali friend's travel expenses several times a year from Kathmandu to Pokhara. We feel that the family needs checking up on now and then.

So, hopefully, Ishwar will stay at school and work and have the opportunity to get a good job and help his family in the long run.

My girlfriend will be visiting Pokhara in September. No doubt, one of these days, Ishwar will be visiting us in England.

[spindrift]

Kerouac - isn't it amazing to be able to give hope to a family for just £110 per year?

[Deleted]

Yes, that is amazing. It is always better when you can help someone whom you have met.

I have done it three times in my life, but only on a one-shot basis, unfortunately. One person was an Ethiopian student whom I met in Addis Ababa. He spoke 6 languages but was dressed in rags. Just before I left, he asked me if I had any extra clothes. I told him that I was sorry that I couldn't give him anything immediately, because I had brought the strict minimum for the trip, but I promised that I would send him extra clothes as soon as I returned home. I kept my promise, and sent a really big box of old clothes when I returned home about 3 weeks later and promptly forgot about it. But after about three months I received a letter of thanks, explanations about visiting his family in the famine zone, all of the problems, and how hard it was to return to the capital (where his address was a P.O. Box). The letter was so sincere that it brought tears to my eyes. Can you imagine that I lost his letter and address and was not able to stay in touch? But I will never forget that his name was Meki Nasser.

The other two instances were people encountered in Havana and Saigon. I stayed in touch with the guy from Havana for some time, because he had invited me to his home with his parents, and had sent photos of his son and his girlfriend. We corresponded for more than a year, and I sent him a bank transfer when he informed me of serious problems. Whether or not it was true did not really matter to me -- I had seen his living conditions, and I could afford to help.

The person in Saigon was a Laotian monk who had started talking to me at the Jade Emperor temple. In the ensuing days, he took me all over Saigon on the back of his motorbike and showed me things that I would never have seen otherwise. Some of these things were even inappropriate for a monk to know about, probably. When his motorbike broke down on an outing one night, I was happy to pay for the repair -- it cost me something like 30€ but it was an enormous amount for him.

[spindrift]

What a shame that you lost Meki Nasser's letter. Your story nearly brought tears to my eyes. Isn't it great when locals (such as the Laotian) take you under their wing and show you around? This happened to me in Singapore. As you say, you get to see things that tourists wouldn't generally come across.

I pay for my dear Sherpa guide's son to be educated at a day school at Kathmandu. It's not a government school; I think it's a private one. His son works really hard, I know that. Whenever I'm in Kathmandu I am invited to Dawa's home. He lives away from the bustle and noise of the city on the outskirts where there are still fields. It's not far from the sacred temple of Swayambhunath. I have mentioned that I would like to learn to speak the Nepali language and Dawa has offered me a room in his house; furthermore, the dear fellow said he would put a shower in the house for me. This is unheard of in most homes. I might take him up on the offer one of these days. I do want to get involved in giving real financial help to a whole village - should my finanaces improve so I had better learn the rudiments of the language. In any case I can't think of anywhere more fascinating to live than Kathmandu.

[bixaorellana]

This is SO gratifying to read! I have been wondering about Ishwar since your first installment which ended with his disappearance. How wonderful that you all have made this commitment, which has turned out to involve far more than giving money, generous as that is.

Even though I see a great deal of rural poverty where I live, the interiors are always a shock. It's not simply that it's unpleasant, it's that everything -- cooking, washing, etc. -- is so much harder under those circumstances. (So many of those photos could have been taken here -- the eatery, the barbershop, the school, the hut. Even the people -- I'd not look twice if I saw them walking down the street in Oaxaca.)

My own little story of help pales beside the efforts you all have made, but it was greatly rewarding nonetheless. I had a large store of men's clothing of a particular size -- nice stuff, including good shoes, everything. (and no, I don't want to get into that story) Anyway, I put lots of it into a large sports bag, then boxed up what didn't fit into that. I put it into the trunk of my car and waited for my opportunity. There was a very young man who worked the huge, very busy intersection of Cinco Señores as a fire eater. This is not nice work if you can get it! Anyway, he was of the right skinny build for the clothes I had and I managed to catch him at the red light and ask if he'd accept some clothes. He leapt at the chance & met me around the corner so I could park & give him the stuff. We chatted a little, & he told me of the many jobs he had -- gardening, portering, anything he could pick up. He was obviously quite bright & a hard worker. Anyway, from that day to this, several years later, I've never seen him at the intersection again. I believe the tiny boost of being able to look for jobs while better dressed may have gotten him out of the fire-eating gig.

Sorry to digress with my story! Spindrift, your story is not only moving, it's a practical directive as to how people can help when visiting countries where poverty prevails. Those kids will forevermore have choices in their lives that were unimaginable before. Perhaps Ishwar will begin to smile.
That little boy is about as cute as he can be!

[Deleted]

Such lovely kids they are, writeon. It's so sad that even though it is illegal to discriminate anyone because of their caste, it still goes on. It is shocking to see just how these poor people live day in and day out. And you say that the Mumbai slums are ever worse? I heard a story about a Dalit woman who wanted to do a job where she would have to cook for students at a school. She was reluctantly given the job, but the students refused to eat what she made, simply because she was from a lower caste. Eventually she was fired and someone else was hired for the job. It's all so wrong.

Kerouac that's a very touching story, I think the letter would brings tears to my eyes too.

Bixa, thanks for the insight into the poverty around where you live, it's sometimes easy to forget that just across from one of the richest countries in the world there live a lot of very poor people.

[happytraveller]

I'm so happy they have found the boy again !!
Beautiful stories, all of them !

[Jazz]

I somehow felt that the saga of Ishwar was not over for you and won't be, for a very long time. This is wonderful. To help this little boy and his family for a modest sum is excellent...As is your long term goal of perhaps the village? I think it is vital to our own sense of humanity to help another, even if it is only once or on a small scale. The quantity or number of times of giving is relatively unimportant. One gift can change another person's life irrevocably. I think that each of you who talked about special efforts were significent to the persons you helped.

Here is the link to the beginning of 'A Nepali Horseboy's Lost Chance'
anyportinastorm.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=pictures&thread=119&page=1#20585

[hwinpp]

Good story, SD, and a happy outcome.
I believe the way you chose to help somebody is the right way to do it.

When I was in Siem Reap I used to donate 50 kg of rice per month to an orphanage.

[spindrift]

Thank you all for your encouragement and stories.

Bixa - I always look at the photos of Ishwar to see if he is smiling. I think the poor boy has encountered so many problems in his short life that he has lost the ability to smile or to trust anyone. I can't blame him.

Jazz: Thanks for putting that link.

He did smile at me quite often when he was looking after my horse on the trek to Lo Manthang. I remember how brave he was. Once, when he held the stirrups for me to heave myself only the horse, my camera (which was hanging round my neck) hit his dear little face and hurt him. How brave and good he was. He made no fuss or demonstration of pain, but carried on helping me. I was struck to the heart by this.

Bixa - I'm quite sure that your gift to the fire-eater (what a job!) made a big difference to his life.

Hwinpp: Rice is the best possible item to donate.

Thought for the day: How fortunate we are that we were not born into dire circumstances.

[spindrift]

Jazz - regarding my project of Helping a Village...I hope it will be a reality one day. I am already in touch with a poster called 'Stilltrekkin' who posts (or used to post) on LP. She has set up quite a large charity where she lives in Canada. She lives many months of the year in Kathmandu and oversees the construction of schools and help to villages in a certain district. Her help will be invaluable to me.

My Sherpa, Dawa, has told me of certain villages not too far from the Kathmandu valley where the majority of people are born deformed....he thinks probably due to contaminated water (naturally contaminated) in the area. It is these villages in particular that I have in mind to help. What a difference it would make to lives if a pure source of water became available. (However the contamination might be in the earth in the fields). Anyway I would seek to find out for sure and do something about it.

My idea would be to approach a large US supplement company and propose to undertake to oversee supplementation programme (principally vits A (enhancing respiration) and C (dire lack of vit C) and a mineral supplement (all the mins) - plus donate specially bred hens (to cope with altitude, protein in the eggs and meat, easily absorbed) and send in fruit (they never have the opportunity to eat fruit)...and I am SURE that within 6 months or a year there would be a huge and discernible difference in the health of the villagers. This could serve as an advertising campaign as to the efficacy of vit/min supplementation.

Whereas we are well-fed in the west and supplementation is a luxury and we can't see the difference I KNOW that in areas where people are semi-starving, the difference with supplementation would be enormous and easy-to-see.

If I get this going I might need helpers...Anyone? Administration etc?

[Deleted]

Thought for the day: How fortunate we are that we were not born into dire circumstances.

I second that.

[happytraveller]

Yup, I third it.

[Deleted]

May 25, 2009 9:56:25 GMT spindrift said:

If I get this going I might need helpers...Anyone? Administration etc?

I am certainly interested.

[Jazz]

Spindrift and your project of Helping a Village...Your idea is complex and excellent. You seem to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve, I'm sure in much more detail than you write about here. I am not very knowledgeble about the area of the world, nutrition etc., but two thoughts came into my mind.

1. An excellent public relations person who shares your vision and some hands on expertise of what you want to accomplish. Most of us are not the ideal choice to 'sell' our own ideas. Also, you will be busy with both the overview and many other things. If you choose a large US firm, it may be good to have a person based there...to visit in person...this is always more effective than any other method of communication.

Two things may lure the firm in, tax write-offs and free publicity. This leads me to my other thought,

2. One good documentary cameraman or a minimal crew (2-3 people). As the year progresses, you can film what you are doing, as well as keeping a journal...its amazing how you can forget details. The ultimate goal may be a 2 hour documentary, or a series of half hours? These smaller segments can be sent to the Generous US Firm to encourage them. At the same time, your public relations persons can be setting up possible places to distribute this....PBS(US), TVO or CBC (Can) or BBC.

Often I watch documentaries and I am most absorbed by those that are more specific...perhaps, the story over the year of six families and personal interviews, rather than a massive overview and a narrator droning on about statistics.. Your story of Ishwar is a perfect example. (of the specific!) Speaking of droning on...

Courage!

[Deleted]

Thank you for the follow up spindrift. Your story was one of the first threads I read on this forum and I still marvel and remain grateful for all your efforts. Such a beautiful story.
I would be willing to assist you in fulfilling your goal. I feel proud to "know" you.

[bixaorellana]

Spindrift, any charity needs contributions both great and small. I was recently in the position of needing to send a small amount of money to England for a person who was doing a favor. The person had a paypal account, so it seemed like a simple endeavor. Ha! Paypal is a mess. The upshot was the money never got sent and I was most disappointed.

I'm bringing this up here because paypal is the first method thought of when thinking about sending money. Just saying that when you get this started and people read about it here, they'll want to contribute and it will be horribly frustrating if the money-sending method won't work.

[Deleted]

May 25, 2009 11:51:02 GMT casimira said:

Thank you for the follow up spindrift. Your story was one of the first threads I read on this forum and I still marvel and remain grateful for all your efforts. Such a beautiful story.
I would be willing to assist you in fulfilling your goal. I feel proud to "know" you.

I feel the same way. Writeon, you are an example to us all. Your kind heart and thoughtfulness makes me feel proud and lucky to know you too.

[bjd]

I'm just at the last pages of Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson. The story of an American climber who wants to build a school for kids, and especially girls, in tiny villages in Pakistan's mountains. Since he started in 1995, he has built 55 schools, plus helped with other projects. But it has been very hard since he did everything himself, without knowing anything about fund-raising, or any kind of organization.

You might find interesting ideas in that book, Spindrift. It is extremely inspiring.

[spindrift]

Oh! I'm so encouraged. I will find the courage to takes things on and on. You are all so kind. You are offering so much with ideas and encouragement.

Jazz - I had never thought of the documentary idea. It would be brilliant if I could get someone interested. I was thinking that Solgar would be the ideal supplement company to approach.

Several years ago I made a big effort to find and study statistics produced by the WHO and other NGO organisations on their findings in Nepal. I came up with pitifully few references. My son was at the LSE in London and through him I was permitted to make use of their library. I must dig out the paper I wrote from the facts I gleaned from the one publication I found which only covered women, babies and young children to the age of about 10yrs and any diseases pertaining to them. No other printed statistics were available to me. This seemed to show that no-one is interested in Nepal. The primary diseases I remember writing about were Respiratory problems and Blindness, also premature births and the numbers of children categorised by the age they died (such as before the age of 5).
There were no birth records or birth certificates or death certificates for that matter.
There is a dearth of information.

Truly, I feel that the world cannot be bothered about the poor and destitute in Nepal and the rest of the Third World.

I did get in touch with the Charity Commission in the UK and a bundle was sent to me advising how to present reports to be considered if funds from the EU and such like organisations are applied for. I believe that a large fee of about £20,000 is charged for just setting up the charity and , of course, I do not have this type of money.
I expect to receive some money in a possible inheritance but even this is not sure.

The fatest and most efficient way to send money anywhere is to use Western Unions offices which seem to be everywhere around the world. I have never had any problems.

I would be most grateful to all of you for any help, suggestions and interest you may feel in what I'm trying to achieve for the poor of Nepal. Actually it could be a great way to get this website known world-wide if it took off.

I'm not sure of my next step. I was getting used to waiting for some inheritance money...but of course I might never get it! People change their minds, after all.

Jazz - where do you think I should start?

Some of you should come to Kathamdu with me and I'll show you around and you could see for yourselves. We'd go to Pokhara too. I'm vaguely proposing to trek to Kailash in western Tibet at the beginning of September, this would start in Kathmandu so I'd be there a week before setting off to Kailash . Anyone interested?

[spindrift]

One more thing to mention. I have many contacts in Kathmandu. Some are at the top of society and some near the bottom ....a lot of people know me very well and welcome me as a friend. I think I can get started in Kathmandu and that my aspirations will not be rejected. The Nepalis are the only people in the world I have met who genuinely are happy when you want to help their people (those they don't know).... I haven't found this generosity of spirit anywhere else.

[Jazz]

Spindrift, I will PM you with a few thoughts.

[spindrift]

I have been asked to update this thread about the Nepali horseboy whose name is Ishwar. Two years have passed since I last wrote about him.

You may remember that whilst trekking in upper Mustang, Nepal, my friend 'J' and I took an interest in the little horseboy who lived a life of deprivation with no prospects for his future. With his parents permission we took him down from the high mountains and back to Pokhara where I found a boarding school to suit his needs. J and I bought him everything necessary to begin a life with hope. To be brief, Ishwar did not fit into a normal lifestyle and who can blame him? He had been running free since the day he was born. He ran away from the school and joined a circus where he looked after animals. He returned to his life of deprivation. Having given him the chance to be educated (for he is a bright boy) and having provided his parents with a house to live in (something they never before had) he made no use of his newfound luck. At this stage 'J' returned from england to Pokhara and with the help of a trekking friend, Shree, Ishwar was found, brought home and his family were helped to a better life. Ishwar has never been forgotten and we have paid Shree to journey to Pokhara from Kathmandu to see this little family and steer them in the right direction. Up to now the parents have carried sand up from the river in order to earn their few rupees to eat...but whatever money they have they spend on cheap alcohol, have fights with each other and finally they are told to move on by their compatriots.
So it seemed like I had spent enough money on this hopeless situation.

But 'J' wouldnt give up. She flew to Nepal a month ago, did a short trek around Poon Hill and then tried to sort out Ishwar and his family yet again.

So here is an update:

Ishwar's father recently had a stroke. He cannot carry river sand any more but he was fortunate in that his slum landlord gave him a job pedalling a rickshaw. Jane visited him in his slum dwelling and paid all the back rent to the landlord. This means that they can stay in their dwelling place until the end of December. Unfortunately once again, the landlord has given them notice to leave due to their constant noisy rowing. 'J' thinks that the mother is making the most trouble and noise, always quarrelling with her family... she is addicted to alcohol of course.
In the meantime Ishwar's sister (20 yrs old) has married a man of higher caste. She was lucky to have this opportunity. She continues to attend school in Pokhara.

It appears that Ishwar's family originally came from a small village about 2 hours walk? from Pokhara. Ishwar has been trying to get his parents to return there instead of hanging around Pokhara.

So,'J' gave Ishwar enough money for him to pay for his citizenship. I have no idea what this really means and neither does she. However it means that if he qualifies at school he can get a job, go to college or obtain a driving licence...

The little brother, Bhagwan, is still attending school and doing well. Ishwar skips off school all the time and has been hanging around with boys who make trouble in the town. I was decided to take Ishwar to Kathmandu, so he travelled there with J and Shree. They have found yet another school for him and put him in there in the hope that he will be able to qualify doing a trade. Such a school costs £170 per annum (Rps 20,000) and this includes food, books etc)...
Since J arrived back in england she has heard from the school that Ishwar enjoys learning to dance!!!

It is interesting to learn that Ishwar has never said 'thank you' to J but his father exhibits gratitude which is something. We have been supporting this family since 2007. If you ask me it has been money thrown away and I ceased to pay anything from last year. I would much rather we could help someone else who would study and make the best of what we offered.

J tells me that Ishwar's school is featured on Facebook so I will look for it later on and give you the link and I will C & P some of J's photos of Ishwar himself.

[mickthecactus]

What a fascinating story Spindrift. I hadn't seen this (along with about 90% of this site....).

[spindrift]

thank you Mick. I will now bump up A Nepali Horseboy's Lost Chance... which is the first part of the story...

[spindrift]

I have just uploaded J's wonderful photos taken 3 weeks ago in and around Pokhara. These will give you a remarkable insight into how life is lived in Nepal and how tough it is for some.
I shall post these this evening...

I see that Ishwar looks completely different now to what he was 4 years ago! He is very handsome and due to his improved diet he has grown quite tall. I am so happy for him. J told me that he is talking of getting married! He does not know his age. No records of this type are kept by poor Nepalis.. We guess that he is around 18 or 19 now.

[bixaorellana]

So exciting that you're updating this story, and with pictures, too! This deeply affecting story is a rare glimpse into a different and remote world.

[spindrift]

Yes, Bixa, you are right. J and I have been involved with this little family for the last four and a half years and, no doubt, we will continue in our endeavours to help them. It is a shame that Ishwar has never taken much trouble to try to better his lot, which, in turn, would have benefited the rest of his family. As it is, we think that his young brother, Bagwan, is the promising one. He attends the government school J found for him and he studies hard. We think he is about 8 years old.

Here is a picture of Bagwan dressed in his school uniform.

Bagwan and Shree. Shree is our trekking friend from 2007. He has kept an eye on the family and taken a personal interest in their welfare. He lives in Kathmandu but finds it no trouble to take a bus to Pokhara (7 hours) to care for this family.

This is the government school where Bagwan goes to his lessons.
To me it looks great.



Here is the slum area where the family live. People have laid their washing on the roof to dry. It doesn't look bad to me. Pokhara is at an alititude of only 2,000ft and so the weather is not cold. Rice is grown in the area so that means it must be warm.


Two pictures of Ishwar's mother. If you look back at the previous two threads (Parts 1 and 2) you will notice the difference and the decline of this woman. Of course she has spent many years moving and carrying sand from the riverbed; this being work that most of us could not do ourselves.


The interior of the family house...they are so lucky to have a proper roof over their heads and four walls around them. When we first met them they lived under a sheet of corrugated iron with three sides open to the elements.