Sherab Dorji: Ugyen Dorji
Photos
Quotes
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Ugyen Dorji : Will the walk up be hard?
Michen : It will be easy. It will be a stroll along the river for the first six days. Then there is a little climb. As we reach up there, the walk is so nice. You will wish it never ends.
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Ugyen Dorji : When my grandpa was alive, I would always eat from his wooden bowl. Food does taste best from a wooden bowl. Even now, eating from Asha's bowl, the food tastes just like it did back then. I miss my grandparents now.
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Ugyen Dorji : Maybe I was a yak herder in my previous life.
Asha Jinpa, the Village Headman : You must have been more than that. Maybe you were a yak.
Ugyen Dorji : A yak?
Asha Jinpa, the Village Headman : Yaks are very important to us.
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Michen : Our aim is to try our best to make your stay here warm and comfortable.
Ugyen Dorji : You're all too respectful. My friends would think it was so funny.
Michen : Well, you are a teacher.
Ugyen Dorji : A teacher is just like anyone else.
Michen : No, they're not. A teacher guides our kids to follow...
Ugyen Dorji : The right path?
Michen : Yes. How did you know I was gonna say that?
Ugyen Dorji : Sangay said it in class earlier.
Michen : Asha always says that. No matter who they are, we must respect all teachers.
Ugyen Dorji : No one ever told me that, not even during my training days.
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Ugyen Dorji : You two can really sing.
Michen : Sir, we're yak herders. We have to be able to sing.
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Michen : When I used to take this route as a kid, it would all be covered in snow and ice. I guess it's due to the changing times. There's no snow and ice now.
Ugyen Dorji : It's called global warming.
Michen : What?
Ugyen Dorji : Global warming.
Michen : I don't know what this global warming means, but I do know that these mountains are the home of the snow lion. But with less snow and ice every year, the snow lions might lose their home... and disappear from our world forever.
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Asha Jinpa, the Village Headman : It has started to snow in the mountains now. Day by day, there will be more snow. Soon our village will be covered in snow. Winter has arrived. It's time to move our yaks to the lowlands. It would be better for you to leave now.
Ugyen Dorji : But I haven't finished my lessons.
Asha Jinpa, the Village Headman : If you don't go now, you won't be able to leave till next spring. We'd be happy to have you stay, but we don't have a choice. Please come back next year. You have to come back for the kids.
Ugyen Dorji : But, Asha... I'm going abroad soon.
Asha Jinpa, the Village Headman : For how long?
Ugyen Dorji : Maybe forever.
Asha Jinpa, the Village Headman : I have heard people say that our country is the happiest one in the world. So why would someone like you, who is capable and educated, who is the future of our country, seek happiness elsewhere? I will tell Michen and Singye to prepare the horses. You should leave the day after tomorrow.
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Ugyen Dorji : How are your shoes so clean? Look at mine. People would think we were walking on different paths.
Michen : Sir, it's because I avoid the muddy areas.
Ugyen Dorji : How? There's mud everywhere! I got my shoes in Thimphu. The shopkeeper said they were waterproof and would be good in mud. She lied. My socks are all wet.
Michen : I've never worn any other shoes. When I first got these, I hugged them and slept in them. If I wore shoes like yours, I probably wouldn't even know how to walk.
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Ugyen Dorji : Do you always sing here? Why?
Saldon : Just to make an offering of a song.
Ugyen Dorji : Hey! Wait! I didn't understand what you said about making an offering.
Saldon : It's a song that I offer to all sentient beings: to the people, animals, gods, and to the local deities.
Ugyen Dorji : What do you mean?
Saldon : When the black-necked cranes sing, they sing without worrying about what people might think. They just offer their songs, and I do the same.
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Ugyen Dorji : I have altitude problems.
Education Secretary : Altitude problems? Aren't you Bhutanese? This isn't an altitude problem, it's an attitude problem!
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Ugyen Dorji : I wanted to make myself a hot cup of tea last night, but I couldn't start a fire. I thought maybe I'd use paper to get it started.
Michen : Burning paper in Lunana is like burning money. We use yak dung here.
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Ugyen Dorji : Will you ever come to Thimphu?
Saldon : No, I won't. This is my home, and my mother's here. She's getting old now, and the cold hurts her feet. I'll just stay here. Practice Yak Lebi Lhadar and come back. I'll be waiting for you here. Sing like the black-necked cranes.
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Ugyen Dorji : Don't you wear shoes? It's very cold outside, plus it's muddy and rough.
Phurba : It's an old habit, so I'm comfortable this way. And we don't have money, so we can't afford shoes.
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Ugyen Dorji : Hey, Saldon. Why is there a yak in the classroom?
Saldon : This is Norbu. He's our oldest yak. I brought him for you.
Ugyen Dorji : For me? What will I do with him?
Saldon : You struggle climbing up the mountain to pick up dung, so I got him for you. He provides us with the most essential thing, so we named him Norbu, the wish-fullfilling jewel.
Ugyen Dorji : I don't think we can keep him in the classroom. Can I tie him outside?
Saldon : No, you can't. It's too cold outside.
Ugyen Dorji : Do yaks feel the cold?
Saldon : Yes, they do. Please keep him inside. See how much dung you need, and feed him accordingly.
