In Return
by William Liu, 2019
When I was born, a Tibetan priest gave me name which meant lucky as well as courageous in his tongue: Zahijimi. A name composes one’s identity, and, hence, ever since my childhood, I was fascinated with this seemingly rich but mysterious region.
During the summer of my freshman year, I convinced my parents to take me on a trip to Tibet. I knew that the journey was hard; after all, Tibet is a largely undeveloped and wild region. However, I desired to come into close contact with that region. With a few bags and Jeeps, we bumbled up 20,000 feet above sea level into the small but ancient mountain village where the Tibetan priest resided. Despite the tough journey, the meaningful interaction we engaged in with the locals really made this experience valuable. Every time before we leave, I always remember the several children tugging at our sleeves, making us promise to return every year.
At Tade Temple, we always bring many new gifts and useful supplies we managed to buy with the money we raised. This year, due to the increase in fundraising, we managed to not only bring over many books and school utensils to further kick start their education, but we also managed to bring two new laptops. Therefore, the children's educational experience will both improve and they might even have the chance to learn more through technological interactions. In fact, one of the priests even mentioned to me how their schools have grown over the past few years and how students seem to be learning better.
However, I managed to learn a lot in return from the Tibetans too. Throughout the days on the mountain, I learned what fruits taste good, which mushrooms cured altitude sickness, and how to make a butter like substance from yaks. Their Lama even diligently lectured me about Tibetan history and culture, providing more insight than I could ever discover in a history class. Most importantly, I was just amazed to learn how their temple, which the locals built by hand, and their religious center has been around since the Yuan Dynasty.
Hopefully, as my non-profit organization continues to grow, we can continue to increase educational opportunities for the children of Tade Temple in Tibet. More importantly, we hope that many of you might be interested in coming on a journey with us to engage in this meaningful cultural experience with the Tibetans.
