“I am in the middle of my final exams for the School Leaving Certificate. These are the most important exams. But I cannot only focus on studying. Because at home there is no water in the tap or the pond any more. Before the earthquake we had plenty. Now I have to walk far every day to fetch water. This is going to affect my exams results, I’m sure, but water is our basic need to survive.”
Photo: Nitika Shrestha
“Six students were with me in the library when it happened. I told everyone to hold each other tight. ‘Don’t panic! Be calm! Pray to god this will be over soon’, I said. I closed my eyes, I could not look. It lasted 2.5 long minutes.
“We used to be a well-equipped school. The students were always excited to use our facilities. But now we don’t even have a library. We don’t have a computer lab. We don’t have a science lab. And it’s School Leaving exams. We are hopeful the students’ results won’t be affected by the earthquake. The teachers are working a lot. But these exams are very tough.
“The students are not allowed to enter the school. It is not safe. There are cracks everywhere. The parents asked us: ‘How can we still bring our children here? It’s not safe!’ We had trauma session with psychologists and we built temporary classrooms, right next to the ruin. And a small zinc hut that serves as a canteen.
“We have written to the government. Some ministries want to help with the finances. We have the manpower. We could start building a new school right away. Sure, it will take a few years. We just need the government to give us the land so we can start.”
Photo: Sven Wolters
“We became best friends because of the earthquake. Her house collapsed and her family was moved to this camp, even though they are not from around here. Then she got admitted to the same school I am going to. First I saw her there and when I saw her again later in the camp, I talked to her. And since that day we became best friends.”
Photo: Pratik Rana
“The earthquake buried our landlord’s entire family under the house we were renting. We were away, so we are alive. I know it’s nothing less than a miracle. But as time passes, it’s becoming harder and harder to survive. I lost my job. We lost the money we borrowed from a loan shark to send my husband to work abroad. There is still a heavy interest to pay on that. We now live in a tent in a displacement camp.
“But of all the things, the greatest problem is that I’ve been unable to pay my son’s school fees. I have discussed this with the principal several times, but so far we haven’t reached a compromise. My son has started bunking school because his friends tease him. I’m worried about how that is going to affect him. I know our second life is a priceless miracle. But I wish another miracle would occur so that we can settle our financial problems and my son can go to school again happily.”
Photo: Naomi Mihara
