Post earthquake ramblings..

April 25, 2015 began as most days in my village. I woke up to the women in my Nepali host family busily cleaning and preparing food. They of course had been up for at least two hours before me because, as the warm monsoon season approaches, early mornings are the best time to complete house chores. My Didi (literally older sister, but my host mom) had been working in a neighbor’s corn field since 6 am, and was waiting for me to join the group to help. I was feeling particularly ‘American’ that day, and wanted to finish other work I had started on my own. I called down the mountain to let Didi know. She said ok, but was probably laughing at my American tendency to work alone some days. Women in Nepal rarely work alone or do anything alone, at least this is true in my village. It’s a way of life that I’ve slowly adapted to for the past 7 months as a Peace Corps volunteer (PCV) in Nepal. I grabbed my bag and seeds and started the 15 minute walk to the corn fields down the mountain. My family agreed to rent half of a 9 X 15 meter field to me for research (I’m also a Peace Corps Masters International graduate student at New Mexico State University). The days plan was to sow Dhaincha seeds, a commonly used cover crop that can improve soil fertility. It was around noon while I was sowing seeds, when I heard a low rumble and the ground began to shake. It took me a few seconds to register that an earthquake (7.8 magnitude) was happening. Since I was in an open field, I felt safe, but the ground was moving in the most unusual way. It moved up and down, but also jerked a little from side to side. My balance was thrown off, and I sat down clutching my KhoDaalo, a Nepali hoe. I immediately thought (in Nepali), Ke Bhayo?!  What happened? I could hear scared voices and the crying of people and birds all around me. I reached for my cell phone to call my fellow PCV friends, but the cell signal was down. I couldn’t text or call anyone, not even my Nepali family up the mountain. After 30 or so minutes I began working again because I didn’t want to risk walking back up the mountain to my house. An aftershock hit soon after, this again brought me to a sitting position and lasted about 2 minutes. I remember thinking, ‘when will it ever stop?!’ This time I continued to sit in the field and call other PCVs and Peace Corps staff until I finally touched base with someone three hours later. It wasn’t until 10 pm that night that Peace Corps had accounted for all PCVs and let us know everyone was unharmed. That night sleep was sparse due to multiple aftershocks that were felt throughout the night.

A picture of Nyatapola temple before the earthquake. It was severely damaged during the earthquake. 

The epicenter was said to have happened east of the district Lamjung in Gorkha district. I found this out through my Dad when I called the next morning. He of course had more information than I did. He also found out through Peace Corps Washington that I was safe before I could even call home. My Dad filled me in on the status of Kathmandu, which was not good. He told me about the rising death toll, that the Kathmandu international airport was closed, the graphic images of destroyed villages in Gorkha. Later Peace Corps told me that families were sleeping outside because their houses were not safe to enter. The Nepali government sent out a nationwide message encouraging households to take precaution and sleep outside if their houses weren’t safe. My family slept outside for two days. A few days later life appeared to have returned to normal. My village sustained minor damages and no injuries. Communication with Peace Corps was sparse, but they would text updates when they could. Peace Corps headquarters didn’t experience severe damage; however, PC staff members, PCVs not in their host village, Peace Corps Trainees who were visiting Katmandu, and any traveling American citizen were invited to stay in the U.S. Embassy in Kathmandu. According to fellow PCVs, they worked around the clock at the embassy. They answered phone calls of loved ones looking for their friends or relatives traveling in Nepal, cleaned public areas in the embassy, prepared meals, and assisted Peace Corps and embassy staff as needed. All the while, aftershocks continued.

Very informative yet easy to read figures of the earthquakes' impact in Nepal. 

About one week later, Peace Corps Washington made the decision to evacuate all PCVs and Trainees from Nepal. I was in shock. In my village, we were working as normal. We knew the death toll was rising and in other areas of Nepal rescue and relief teams were working hard to find survivors, but I never thought we would be evacuated. My first thought was to stay put in Nepal and join rescue and relief efforts, but we weren’t allowed by Peace Corps for a number of reasons. The main reason being we weren’t trained for relief work. This bothered me to the core, but if I wanted to remain a PCV I needed to follow instructions.

Four days after the earthquake life resumed as normal. We were carrying compost to the field when we ran into our friend carrying corn stalks for her livestock.

Sukiyo!! (Finished) Didi (far left), me, Soba (middle right), and her husband Mone (far left) just finished incorporating compost into a corn field four days after the earthquake. This is the same field I was working in when the first earthquake happened. 

We departed Kathmandu airport on May, 6^th and transitioned for three days in Bangkok, Thailand. After being in Nepal for 7 months, I experienced reverse culture shock immediately. I was filled with a whirlwind of emotions: why did I have to leave, why is this happening, how long will I be away from my Nepali community and family, will I lose all the Nepali language I’ve worked so hard to learn, why can’t we stay and help, the thoughts go on and on. On May 10^th I arrived in the Dallas, TX. Compared to Nepal’s magnificent mountains and Himalayan views, Dallas was the most opposite environment I could have returned to. As I rode the shuttle bus, void of the typical Nepali music playing in public transportation, I couldn’t believe I was in the U.S. It was a mix of happiness and gratefulness that I was going to see my family, but sadness and hopelessness that I couldn’t stay and help in Nepal.

The first few days I fought off jetlag and tried to form a routine, which consisted of running, eating my favorite foods, and looking for ways to stay connected to Nepal (books, calling my Nepali family, pictures) until our return date that was ambitiously set for May 30^th only 20 days later. On May 12^th I awoke to a text from my Dad saying a major aftershock (7.3) had occurred in Nepal. My heart sank. It felt like a blow to the gut, but I know a blow that doesn’t even compare to the distress, heartbreak, and fear of Nepalis who actually experienced the first earthquake and the innumerable aftershocks. I called my Nepali family immediately, and they said they barely felt anything as the earthquake was further away near Mount Everest, Sagarmatha in Nepali. This major aftershock delayed Peace Corps Nepal in making our fast return a reality. Staff members’ homes were further damaged, not to mention unsettled nerves and fear of another large aftershock. Despite everything, they continued to work to bring us back. A new return date was decided, June 20^th.

June 20^th felt like a good date to return, and I started feeling a little more positive about not being in Nepal. I called my Nepali host family and let them know when they could expect me, and then more bad news came. I woke up to an email from Peace Corps Nepal’s Country Director, basically my boss, saying that he was sorry to be the bearer of bad news. When I return to Nepal, I will not be allowed to live in my Nepali host family’s home because it was inspected and reported as ‘highly vulnerable’ and unsuitable for a volunteer. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. Yes, I felt the earthquakes near my house, but it was standing and livable. I just kept thinking again, ‘why is this happening’?

Now this brings us to the present. I’ve been in contact with the Country Director trying to convince him that I should be allowed to stay with my current host family. I know my efforts are in vain because this rigorous housing assessment is one of the conditions that Peace Corps Washington is requiring in order for the program, PC Nepal, to remain open.  So, PC staff found a new host family for me and about 30 other volunteers. I know I will come to love them like my other family, but it will be another adjustment.  I feel now more than ever connected to Nepali families who lost their loved ones or their homes because now I have too. Yes, I can visit my Nepali family, but it’s not the same as living, eating, and working with them. The bond that forms between people whose cultures and first languages are different is somehow stronger than those of your own culture and language because you have to try much harder to communicate and come to understandings of one another. This is the Peace Corps experience. It’s not about saving the world, a nation, or a single community, it’s about collaborating and building relationships with someone different than you for a greater good. I’m a happy endings kind of person, so this last part is about finding the silver lining. I can’t see the silver lining in this experience (the earthquake and the aftermath) right now, but as our Peace Corps Nepal Country Director has told us from the beginning, ‘trust the process’. That’s what I’m doing.

Before I knew of our new return date, I began to search (I did a quick google search) for Nepali communities in Memphis, TN. I wanted a tangible way to stay connected to Nepal. I came across a local business, Ekata Designs (ekatadesigns.com), which hires refugees. Many of the refugees that have worked for Ekata (which means unity in Nepali language) were refugees in Nepal. I sent a quick message via their website page expecting nothing in return. Happily, I received a reply email and have been able to volunteer and learn more about working with refugees. I want to thank Ekata Designs for letting me help out and speak a little Nepali while I’ve been here. The mission of your business is inspiring! 

Volunteering at Ekata Designs. Me (left), Ran, a Nepali refugee (middle), and Fathi, a Somalian refugee (right).

A few pieces of Ekata Designs jewelry. 

As this blog comes to a close, you might be wondering which organization to donate to or how. My Pre Service Training site, Bekundebesi, in the district of Kavre, one of 39 districts (there are 75 total in Nepal) severely affected by the earthquakes. My PCV group N201 and the current PCT (trainees) group N202 lived there during Pre Service Training. The PCTs won’t be able to return to this site due to extensive damaged sustained during the earthquakes. Both groups, N201 and N202, are working to raise money for the community of Bekundebesi. If you are interested in reading more or donating please visit our website. https://www.crowdrise.com/BekundebesiFund/fundraiser/N202. Your donation will be delivered directly to this community by volunteers of both groups and used by the community to aid in the road to recovery, which will be a long one. If you have already donated to any organizations aiding Nepal, thank you so much!