karmachoden

Youth, Social ills and Family Bonding.

Its summer breaks and children all over the country are home for 15 days. While few will be engaged meaningfully, many will be taking the opportunity of the freedom from the strict watchfulness of the school teachers, wardens and matrons and taking advantage of the unconditional love of the parents.

A young boy of 16 years old has already succumbed to stabbing in a gang fight around Norling area in Changangkha. There are others who are found in groups in their favourite hangouts. Some of the most common places children frequent in groups are around Norling Building area in Changangkha, Yellow Building in Changzamtog, City Bus Parking area in the main town, Red Building in Olakha, Twin Building in Babesa, cinema theatres and all the dark and dingy places. If your children are not home at certain time, do check out these places and all the bars and restaurants around Norzin Lam. Children flocking in the town and streets are like a time bomb. Any time the bomb may blast and we may hear news of another child either being in the hospital or in the custody of the police.

Children are on vacation and it’s time for them to relax, rejuvenate, and recuperate to prepare them for the next half of the academic session. As such, they do deserve some outings to chill out with their friends, share their teenage stuffs that they can only share with their friends. However, these outings will have to be guided so that they don’t get into the peer pressure or any harmful temptations.  Parents should constantly stay informed of the whereabouts of their children, the kind of friends they are hanging out with and the details of the parental backgrounds of their friends.

Parents should also make conscious effort to leave their office on time so that they can spend quality time with their children thereby ensuring that children do not feel the need to hang out much with their friends. There are so many beautiful places that you can hang out with your children if one is in Thimphu. Why not take a healthy walk around the Ludrong Memorial Garden, appreciate the beauty of the nature and enjoy a cool lunch amidst the nature. Or for that matter why not hike up the nature trail around the Kuenselphodrang Park, or drive up to Lamperi Park over a day’s picnic. This may just sound like outings and picnics but this is when parents are together with their children and this is when bonding between the two are enhanced.

I know most parents do know of this but it is our human nature to forget amidst the busy schedule of our daily work unless we continuously remind ourselves and make conscious effort to keep the flame of family bonding burning all the time. It is in this conscious effort that we will save our children from becoming one of the victims of the social ills.

While parents play their role, it is equally important for all the operators of the bars and clubs to be socially responsible and mindful and not to engage in indulging our youth in damaging activities. We can’t shy away from our roles and responsibilities when it comes to our youth- be it our own children or somebody else children. Every individual is responsible. Let’s roll up our sleeve and save a child from social ills.

Book Review: Lomba

Title of the Book: Lomba

Author: Pema Euden

Year of publishing: 2016

Number of pages: 203

Seday the protagonist in Lomba doesn’t sound so enthusiastic about going to Haa having to leave behind her close friends in Thimphu. Nevertheless, she had to tag along with her parents as her father lands up with a good job that paid better and so does her mother who easily lands up with a job by virtue of being a teacher.

Seday wasn’t actually looking forward to her schooling in Haa. She misses her best friends in Thimphu but to her dismay, finds out that they had taken her for granted. However, the strong characteristic in her makes her move on and as time passes by she gradually settles down with her new friends especially Tenzi and Pem in her new school. She finds out that Haa is actually not so bad and she starts to feel at home. Everything was going perfectly well for her.

And then Lomba starts. And that is where the mystery lies. What happens on the night of Lomba if you don’t eat your dinner which is usually Honteys-the cuisine from Haa made on the night of Lomba? What is the mystery about? Is it just a belief? Or does this really happen?

She is being provoked by her friends that if she doesn’t eat dinner on the night of Lomba she will be in for a surprise- a very bad surprise. They tell her mysterious stories about Lomba that doesn’t go very well with her. She doesn’t buy their stories at all and earns the title of being a very stubborn girl.

Seday decides to challenge her two friends to forego her dinner on the Lomba night to prove her friends wrong about the mystery stuff. She feels the whole ritual is a waste of time and stupid. However, on the night of Lomba she finds herself being carried away to a strange land amongst friends and people she had never had any real conversation with surrounded by alien like creatures.  That is where the real story of Lomba starts.

Seday’s experiences in the bizarre world of strange people is put very explicitly, unequivocally and imaginatively in modern contemporary English that is very much relatable to the younger generation of her age.

Through this book of fiction, the author brings out the core values of friendship, relationship, family, trust, good vs evil and most importantly the message that we should never take anything for granted.

The cover art is done very well that matched the imagination of the author and the blurb page leaves a great sense of suspense that kind of arises curiosity in the readers. The author could have worked a little extra on the layout and design and the quality of printing. If not for this little shortcomings, the book has come out very well in terms of the quality of language and story.

Done in 203 pages the young author of 19 years of age has brought out a book of imagination targeted at the young Bhutanese audience. The cost of the book is Nu.295 and most importantly 30% of the proceeds from the book will go to Tarayana Foundation. It may be worth noting that she published her first book, “Coming Home” in 2008 making her the youngest author in Bhutan and the proceeds from the earlier book were also donated to Tarayana Foundation.

‘Lomba’ was launched by Her Majesty the Queen Mother Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck on 28^th June, 2016 at Tarayana Foundation.