Batu Bolon

Utica, NY

Batu was born in Bhutan and lived most of her life there. Moving to Nepal when she was about 50 years old, she recently moved to the States two months ago.

“हामी भुटानी नै हो नि! भुटानको नागरिकता, भाषा चाहिँ नेपाली थियो। भुटानको भाषा, भोटे भाषा बोलिन्थेन। नेपाली भाषा बोलेको भएर नेपाली बनाए। यहाँ (अमेरिकामा) बोल्नुपर्छ नि यिनीहरुको भाषा, भुटानमा पनि त्यै त हो नि। हामी नेपाली नेपाली हो खेतीपाती गरेर बसेको। बसोबास राम्रो थियो। मकै छर्ने टाइममा छर्ने, गोड्ने टाइममा गोड्नुपर्थ्यो। धानको टाइममा धान गर्नुपर्थ्यो, कोदोको टाइममा कोदो थन्क्याउनुपर्थ्यो।

बिस्तारै प्रमाण-पत्र बिना कतै हिड्न नपाउने भयो। एक दिन, प्रमाण-पत्र खोसिदियो मण्डलेले — अफिसमा मागेको छ भनेर लगेको, लगेको लग्यै भयो, कहिल्यै फिर्ता दिएन। छिटै हामी निस्किनुपर्यो अनि एक दिन दिउसै निस्कियौं।

याद किन आउँदैन? जन्मथलो हो! याद आउँछ नि, आउँदैँमा भएन। तर अब त धेरै बर्ष भईसक्यो, धेरै कुरा बिर्सिसक्यो। नेपालको त बिर्सिन थालिसक्यो सब!”

(“We are Bhutanese. We had Bhutanese citizenship, but our language was Nepali. We did not speak Bhutanese. So, because we spoke Nepali, they made us to be Nepali. Just like you have to speak their language here (U.S.), it is the same thing in Bhutan.

We Nepalis lived on farming. Our living was good. When it was time to sow corn, we sowed corn, when it was time to weed, we weeded. We sowed paddy in paddy season, and when it was time for millet, we did millet.

Gradually it became so that you could not go anywhere without your identification card. One day, a mandale (a local officer) took our I.D. cards — said they were needed in the office and never returned them. Soon after, we had to leave. We left in the afternoon one of those days.

Why would not I miss it? It is my birthplace! I miss it, but what does that do? Now it is so many years ago that I have forgotten much of it. I have even started forgetting about Nepal!”)

“अब त बुढी भयो, काम गर्नु छैन। अब त मुख मात्रै छ ट्याउट्याउ गर्न! शरीर पनि गईसक्यो। अब त बाच्ने दिन नै कति छ र? भुइंमा बसेर खाना खान नसके त के बाच्नु र! ९/१० बर्ष भयो यस्तो भएको, कति औषधी गर्यो के के गर्यो केहि भएन। यहाँ पनि एक्स-रे गरेको छ, के भन्छ अब।”

(“Now I am old, there is no work to do. Now I only have this mouth to jabber! Even my body is gone. How many days do I have left to live anyway? And if I cannot sit down on the floor and eat my meals, why live! It has been 9–10 years that it has been this difficult for me. We tried so many medicines and what not, nothing happened. Here they have done X-rays, let’s see what they say.”)

“अमेरिका कस्तो लाग्यो खै के भन्नु र। बसिरहेका छौँ, छोराछोरीले दिएको खाएका छौँ। तर तल्लो-पल्लो घर जानु भन्नु पनि छैन, डुल्नु घुम्नु पाउँदैँन यताउता। सुँगुरको खोरमा बसेको जस्तो छ।”

(“What do I tell you about how I find America? We are living, we eat what our children give us. But there is no visiting people around the neighborhood, is no going out and about. It is like living in a pig sty.”)