How I Saved a Life: An Inspirational Story of a Village Boy.

Introduction

Giving does not necessarily mean having so much to give, but the willingness and ability to share the little you have with others.

The Humble Beginning

My name is Kama, being the first born in a family of five, the responsibility of assisting my siblings and parents rest on my shoulders squarely. I have two siblings, a boy named Bagu and a girl named Eva. We are not rich and affording the essentials of life is a daunting task.

My mother's name is Mofa. She is a petty trader while my father whose name is Lakat dropped out of school due to finance and later became a local farmer in our village. His parents were poor and doesn't want what happened to him happen to us. He tells me always the importance of acquiring modern education as a gateway to escaping poverty to usher in untold success.

Ever since he left school before completion, he promised to give us the opportunity he lost so that we would start life in a better pedestal. The little education he got made him knowledgeable enough to relate with educated people especially his old classmates. He enquires from them from time to time current details about scholarships and grants; and the requirements for pursuing different professions in the University. With these information, he advises me especially to pay attention to my studies. He knew as a poor farmer, I could only study a good course in the University with scholarships or grants, since he couldn't afford the tuition and other costs.

Growing up in a small village in Nepal, my parents taught me the importance of caring and giving to others and helping them when they need it most. But while they were teaching me these values at home, poverty was all around me. In order to get any new clothes or school supplies, we had to rely on hand outs from volunteers or money from relatives living abroad.

My father has a farmland where he planted varieties of crops. We walked miles daily during school holidays to weed, plant or harvest crops as the case may be. My father planted plantain trees, potatoes, banana trees, watermelon, vegetables etc.

Since our farm is quite far from home, we have to wake up as early as from 4.30-5.00am daily to set out. The bush path is snakelike and narrow with tall grasses and tree offshoots which stretches across the paths at intervals. My cloth normally gets wet due to dews and water droplets hanging on the leaves and grasses overnight. I hate it most during the raining season, because the droplets and dew are so much.

The paths are also filled with dirty waters, insects, worms and other crawling organisms. I have to wade through them and eventually it forms irritating, smelly, and blistered boils which scratches annoyingly some few days later in between my toes.

I work very hard with my parents and hardly have time with my friends because we normally come back very late in the day; tired from farm work and long tedious trekking. However, I always look forward to the end of the holidays to actually heave a euphoric sigh of relief once again.

Additionally, I look forward, to each market days, which is slated for the third day of every week. We don't go to farm these days and we have enough to eat. My mother helps out by selling some of the harvested farm produce, while we eat the rest.

I used the opportunity to also visit and play with my friends especially Jakit. She is a girl from a poor background like myself; but is exceptionally brilliant. This is what made us close. We compete head-to-head in class. She has the ambition of becoming an Engineer in future; while I loved the Medical profession.

My Parent's taught me and siblings to respect and love others for who they are whether rich or poor. He also taught me that there is dignity in labor, believe in myself, and have self confidence and esteem. These virtues had helped me so much and made me believe that I can succeed in life anywhere I find myself.

My parents were not rich in material possessions, but very rich in strength, morals, honesty, contentment, hard work, integrity, and values. They also taught me to love and fear God as the author and giver of life, who only has the final say in the affairs of man.

The Encounters

One day while walking home from school, I saw a woman collapse from hunger and dehydration right in front of me on the side of the road. When I approached her as the first person to reach her, she did not respond so I knew she had passed out.

I did not know what to do at first, but luckily a few other villagers came running for help after I raised an alarm. Meanwhile, I didn't eat the food I took to school earlier that day and still have some water left in my little water bottle. The villagers were all confused not knowing what to do. In a flash, I thought she might need the food and water I had wanted to eat at home more than I do.

I quickly knelt down beside her, opened my school bag so she could drink and eat some rice balls. I was dazzled and flabbergasted with the ferocious manner with which she ate the food and drank the water. Indeed, she was famished with hunger and undoubtedly very thirsty too. About 20 mins later, news reached her family who came rushing down and took her home. They thanked me profusely that, I have indeed saved her life.

I was so elated with this commendation. That singular word 'saved' had not left my young subconscious mind since then.

This Primary School experience really made me think about how much help people need around the world from Africa, Asian, Middle East and other nations even in my own village, which is poverty stricken like many others. Ever since this encounter, I had always said to myself that I must devote my entire life to humanity and saving peoples lives through my profession.

The Hope and Transformation

I kept this incident to myself throughout that day, and ruminated over it on my bed all night long. The next day when I came back from school, I told my parents about the woman I saw collapsed and they were very proud of me for stopping to help her. I told them I want to make a difference in this world, but I didn't know how to make this come true.

My mother was preparing the family dinner while my father, who was resting on a bench quickly got up. I was taken aback with the manner and the swiftness of his actions as soon as I finished speaking. He said he had to see his friend right away. Really, I don't know what his mission was, but I know at least when he comes back he will tell me what the matter was.

I started thinking based on what he had always been telling me that he wanted me to be the next generation to help change the world for the better. He made it his personal mission to give me all it takes to achieve my goal of helping others. He came back about half an hour later.

Undoubtedly, he had gone to see one of his old classmates to make an enquiry on how to become a medical doctor. When he told me that, I was so elated and promised to make him proud and to make this lofty dream a reality someday.

The Quest Accomplished

As the years rolls by, I went from Primary School to the High School and eventually gained admission to study Medicine and Surgery at the prestigious University of Houston in the United States on scholarship that covers tuition, accommodation, feeding, and air tickets.

This feat was made possible due to my good academic performance. I passed the Medical School requisite papers in A+ grade levels. I also got the right information about available scholarships through my fathers' persistence and assistance from his learned friends.

My father advised and encouraged me not to allow freedom and lifestyles of my would be new environment shift my focus from my life goal: becoming a doctor, since I would be going to America for the first time.

The trip was smooth, fun and full of surprises; though I had jet lag and swollen feet when I eventually got to the John F Kennedy international Airport 10 hours later, after departing Nepal International Airport on the August 5th, 1976.

On getting to the University, I quickly settled down to my studies, after my registrations and other academic requirements. I was not an average student therefore, I found it easy with my course modules. I got adjusted from rural lifestyles to that of a cosmopolitan city.

So for the past two years I have been working hard at Medical School while continuing to volunteer at hospitals so I can get experience treating patients. I had promised myself to return to Nepal immediately after my studies to help the multitude of people's yearning for medical interventions whose personnel are inadequate.

But recently, my best friends-Jakit got sick and died because she couldn't afford treatment for her illness - and that broke my heart. This bad news was broken to me by father last week during our long telephone conversations. Earlier, she too got admitted to study part time Electrical Electronics Engineering course at the University of Nepal.

The unfortunate incident happened, when she came home briely to see her parents. She suddenly fell ill, and they couldn't afford the hospital bill, but applied local medication at home instead.

With this news, I became more resolute to return home immediately after completing my programs to contribute my quota to the society as a form of giving back.

I realized that there were so many people just like her – young girls with no chance of treatment – who were going to die from curable diseases because they couldn't afford treatment.

That is when I knew the society needs me more than I ever thought before.