I was born in a remote village in the Himalayas. As a young boy, I used to be surprised when my friends pointed far at the distance and counted Yaks on the mountain. I could not see far. I also had trouble reading the letters the teacher wrote on the black board. I used to copy from my friend’s notebook.
When I was fifteen years old I came to Kathmandu. One day, I saw a crowd waiting in front of a rotary club. It was an eye camp where eye doctors from India conducted vision screening tests. To my surprise I could read the small letters on the vision chart when they put eyeglasses in front of my eyes.
I had to wait for my dad to come before I could purchase the eye glasses. It took almost 15 days to reach Kathmandu from my village. The journey included many days of trekking on foot followed by a train ride through the border towns of India and a bus ride from Raxaul to Kathamadu.
When my dad finally arrived and purchased the pair of prescription eyeglasses. I was no longer handicapped. I could see far away objects clearly. The world came to focus and made me a happy person.