Please take a cupcake—they are fresh!Hello lovelies, would you like to help wish maggie a happy birthday? Here’s the thing...she’s sleeping now and when she wakes up it will be her 23^rd birthday weekend and you, yes YOU, her wonderfully kind faithful friends will already have been busy little elves sending wishes from around the world all the way to Nepal, right here, on this little blog! How sweet is that? I think it will be an absolutely gorgeous way for the birthday girl to start the day (that is after she makes her 27 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and walks the kids to school). Yes, even birthday gals need to make lunch. I know she adores every single message you send, so please let’s have some fun! Will you leave maggie a birthday wish?                 A poem? A special quote? A rad song? A note from your sweet heart to her sweet heart? You are the gift. And you are beautiful! Thank you! xxxo, lil’ birdie  

P.S. Won't you please spread the word and keep the love soaring!

Let's get this party started with some music! *It takes a few secs to load...enjoy!

Maya and her teeth

We don't celebrate Halloween here in Nepal but I thought this picture from a few months back would be fitting.

In one of my many attempts to discipline Maya I decided to try the reward technique.  I came up with a plan and decided that if she could go 5 days without cursing, spitting or biting I'd take her to the shop up the road and let her choose ANYTHING she wanted.

At the end of every day we'd talk about her behavior.  I also checked in with the teacher at school at the end of each day when I went to pick her up.  After a few failed attempts she was able to tally up 5 days.  A very happy Maya and I held hands and walked up our little dirt road to the shop at the end of the street.

Picture this... a little shop filled with an array of any kind of colorful candy you can imagine, bubble gum, chocolate bars, cookies, toy cars, EVEN ice-pops.

Maya walked up to the counter and looked around, carefully skimming all the different treats and toys.  Suddenly she pointed to something in the far left corner of the shop.

"Teeth!" she exclaimed.  

"Teeth?"  I asked, clearly having no idea what she was talking about.  I don't even know how she spotted them.

"I want those teeth over there," she said with her impish smile pointing to a jar filled with vampire teeth.

The shop keeper and other people standing around all laughed.  "She could have anything, anything she wanted, and she's choosing teeth?  You don't want chocolate or candy or an ice-pop?"

"Teeth," was all she answered. 

We all laughed.

Her reward for not biting, and she chose vampire teeth!  Just a little bit ironic. 

She always keeps me on my toes this little one.

Happy Halloween.

*To those of you in the Deerfield neighborhood... be sure to stop by my parent's house to trick-or-treat!  Halloween is one of my dad's favorite holidays... Not sure what he has planned for this year but he always goes all out and has the BEST candy.    

Nisha and Madan Rana- brother and sister (in case you couldn't tell)

A few months back I came to know about Small Nisha's, little brother, 7 year old Madan.  It's common for siblings to be separated after the death of parents. I've known about him for a few months but with Juntara's passing and all of the travel I was doing with the application for Do Something, I decided it was safe to keep him where he was until I could be sure that his transition to come and live here could be as smooth as possible.  He was also undergoing treatment for tuberculosis and I needed to be sure it was clear out of his system so that it would be safe to have him here with the other children.  I checked in on him often, but still, knowing that one of my children's only known relatives was sleeping under another roof was constantly in the back of my mind.  In a way I guess I didn't feel like our family was complete without him. 

On a quiet day, just before the brother sister holiday a few weeks ago, I woke up and knew it was time.  I'll never forget the day that Nisha and I went to go pick him up (he's been staying/working in a hotel near the bus station, paperwork already cleared) and it was like the easiest most simple moment in the existence of siblings and man kind.   

"Are you ready to come and live with us?" I asked.  

He didn't blink or take a breath or hesitate for even a milisecond.  "Yes," he answered almost before I had finished my sentence. 

"When do you want to come?" 

"Can I come today?" he asked.  

And he came, just like that, in his bright blue t-shirt and torn pants hanging off his hips with not a single possession to his name.  

And Nisha held his hand and we walked over to the scooter on the side of the busy bus station and a tear rolled down my cheek.  We took him home.

He fit so perfectly in with the rest of the children so instantly that it was almost as though he'd been here all along and maybe that's why it's taken me so long to write this little entry talking about his arrival... because it felt so right.  Like nothing had ever changed.  Everything is as it should be with him here.  

Welcome Madan.

To the outside world, we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts.  We live outside the touch of time.

          Clara Ortega

the hand/butterfly tree

The children all said their goodbyes and Jordyn left yesterday right after the kids went to school.  She's been teaching them art and there are pieces of her scattered everywhere throughout the house.  In her final project she taught the kids how to make their own picture frames and printed pictures to put in them.  There is a tree made of colorful painted hands in our reading room.  Butterflies, tigers, homemade masks, play dough beads, and papermache bowls adorn our home.

When I went to pick the kids up at school they looked disappointed.  "Where's Jordyn?  She left?  She's really gone?"  I think they were all secretly hoping that her flight had gotten cancelled or she'd magically decided to stay.  On the entire walk home we talked about her.  The older girls were the most upset.  Santosh exclaimed out of the blue, "Jordyn really taught us the best art ever!" Maya asked if she was coming back next year.  I said I wasn't sure. 

"But what if we go to Bardia again?  She'll come to Bardia won't she?

It can be sad when our friends go but we really do remember them forever.  Our thanks to Jordyn for everything she taught us.

Also I haven't mentioned here yet that I'm going to be attending the European Summit for Global Transformation in a few weeks in Rotterdam.  The people who are organizing it are generously flying me out for a few days and it looks like it's going to be a really incredible event– merging of minds, ideas, and inspiration!  I've heard they have a few spaces left, so if you're interested check it out!

Hope your week is going swell.  We're just about to kick off our Wednesday morning here.  I'm off to my cup of chai tea and 27* children. (more later)  Bless!

xo Maggie

Krishna, Sagar, Bhukta, Arjuna

Small Nisha, Arjuna

I stopped on the side of the main highway that runs through Surkhet the other day to talk to one of the land owners who we're currently negotiating with.  (Land is still in the works... will update you all later on what's going on with it.)  As I was talking I noticed a kitten trying to cross the road about to get squashed by a tractor.  She made it across and came to hide right underneath my scooter.  And that was that.  I asked around and everyone assured me that she was a stray kitty and told me I could take her.  So I did.  One- because I think she will be good at keeping mice away (she already caught a baby mouse.)  Two because I believe that animals are good for children and the healing process.  I've given the main responsibility of caretaker to Bindu who is in need of some extra love and attention right now.   Three- She was too cute to resist!   

The children named her Arjuna (the arch goddess) which also means bright and shining.  

I also like to think she is the reincarnation of Shroeder, the childhood cat that Kate, Libby and I grew up with on Collins Avenue with Regina.

And I have recently come to know that Jordyn of Do Something is also a cat whisper-er.  She knows every thing there is too know about raising cats.  I've been calling her the cat lady.  She just keeps whipping cat facts out of nowhere.  Good to have her here.  It's her last day with us!!  Will miss her dearly.

Not sure whether I'd rather be; with Maya or back on the side of that highway.  

Lalita in her hospital bed holding cookies

I ran into this little girl in the hospital the other day.  The bottom half of her entire body is burned.  I've never seen anything like it.  I wished I could have taken her pain away.  She was sitting outside on a stretcher all alone.  No room, no blanket to cover her, no bandaging or medicine.  I tried to focus on the upper half of her body.  Looking at the burns made me sick to my stomach.  During the holidays it's almost impossible to find a doctor around here.  It frustrates me beyond belief.  I said a little prayer of thanks– my own children were at home safe and healthy.  We were all playing with sparklers a few nights ago and Puncka somehow managed to singe off all his eyelashes without burning the inside of his eye.  He's absolutely fine, just eyelash-less.

We were able to find a nurse to clean and dress her burns and a room and she is doing much better now.  Marky and I came back with a blanket and have been checking in on her.  Her mother looks to be about 17 or 18 years old and she's mute.  We could only gather the information through hand motions.  We will be keeping our eyes on this little girl and her mother during their stay in the hospital and making sure they are taken care of.

It looks like it could be a long road to recovery.  The little girl's name is Lalita and she is so so brave.  She amazes me actually.  I feel like I was somehow meant to run into her that day in that moment.  I appreciate your prayers for her.  

xo Maggie 

Dancing group in front of our house

These past few days have been the big grand finale of the month long holiday.  Tihar and Diwali festivals.  Groups of children, women, men and teenagers all go house to house singing and dancing and playing instruments (some even came with their own sound systems)  They sing songs and bless your house and family and then in the end you give them a plate of rice, beans, chillis, and a few rupees (depending on how good their dancing/singing was.)  On the last day they take everything they collected and have a big picnic feast celebration.

As you can imagine our house was a major attraction, especially since when the electricity goes out, we run on solar light.  We had group after group coming by the house and performing.  Jordyn, Marky and I all decided it was like a combination of Christmas Caroling and Trick-or-Treating.  FUN FUN FUN!  One teenage boy with a crowd of 30-40 came, made up a song and full on serenaded me.  He had everybody laughing.  Afterwards Karma and Nisha whispered into my ear "Maggie, he was REALLY cute!" which of course made me laugh even more. 

Today was the children's first official day back at school.  Of course there was about a half an hour of absolute chaos this morning: lost homework, missing pencils, hair combing, nail trimming, mismatching socks, ect.  After the kids were gone Ubji and I looked at each other and breathed a sigh of relief. 

"It's so quiet," she said.

It really really was quiet in this house for the first time in over a month.  No drumming, no dance groups, no singing, no children running around, no radio or television blaring.  

Just quiet.

It was only a half day today but it's nice to be in routine again.  We closed off our holiday break last night in a family meeting talking about our favorite memories from our vacation.  Then we all went around in a circle with a candle and talked about what our goals would be for the next few months. 

And lastly here's a photo of two sweet little boys named Pawan and Upendra.  Thank you to Sean Coleman and family for helping us to re-enroll them into school.  They are truly two little gentlemen.  

Upendra and Pawan

The Kopila story is featured on millions of Doritos Cool Ranch bags!

much love, xomaggie

 Our two vans came to pick us up at 8 am sharp Sunday morning.  The kids sprinted into the vans as fast as they could, all fighting over who would get the best seats.  This reminded me so much of summer drives on camping trips with my two sisters, it made me smile.  The kids were so ecstatic they could barely contain themselves.  It was many of their first rides in a van or vehicle ever.  I thought I was prepared.  I stocked up with dramamine, plastic bags and snacks.  The road to the park is 5-6 hours with mostly all turns and switch backs. (If you are eating something, as you read this, right now would be a good time to stop.) Within two minutes of being in the van Rupa started dry heaving and Nisha had her head out the window.  We stopped exactly 3 and 1/2 minutes after leaving our house for water bottles and more plastic bags.  

Poor little Shanti was terrified.  I guess a combination of leaving our home for the first time and the big scary van with all the excitement.  She came and sat on my lap and snuggled up to my chest and wrapped her arms around my neck.  I comforted her until she fell asleep.  Twenty minutes later she opened her eyes, sat up facing me and projectile vomited.  It was straight out of a scene in a movie and there was absolutely nothing I could do.  The van was moving fast and I was in one of the back seats.  I was so stunned that I just sat there and tried to catch it in my t-shirt without saying a word.

The van stopped just as Shanti stopped vomiting.  Someone grabbed Shanti off my lap.  We were all heaving.  Sabita threw up and then Rupa and then Angeli.  I got out of the car and stripped down to my sports bra and underwear.  Maya was yelling that she had to go to the bathroom and I was yelling for someone to grab my bag with a change of clothes, only to remember seconds later that my bag was packed in the van ahead of us that was still on its way.  (Lesson number one when traveling with 26 kids)

Prithi gave me his t-shirt and pants to wear.  We cleaned everybody up and got back on the road.  We finally got to one of the army check points (now just 40 minutes into the trip) and met up with the van ahead of us which Marky and Jordyn were manning.  I could see Marky ahead of us tossing plastic vomit filled bags out the window.  

I'm going to leave this story of the car ride behind and fast forward 5 hours later to when we at last we reach the gates into the national park.  Just about every single kid had vomited every last parcel of food out of their stomach and now they were all starving.  "I'm soooo hungry,"  "I'm so thirsty,"  "I have to go to the bathroom,"  (multiply times 26 little voices)

Our little bungalow lodge was smack in the middle of the park 15 km. into to the jungle.  We passed through beautiful Tharu villages with mud huts with grass thatched roofs and watched the people go about their day's work.  We passed through streams and beautiful forests into the heart of the jungle.

We finally arrived to main center of the park and called our lodge to send their jeep to come and guide us to where we'd be staying.  As per my bank manager's (and good friend) recommendation and a few extended conversations with some travel agents last month I decided to book our stay at The Rhino Lodge.  The lodge was very reasonably priced and had 5 cozy bungalows, each with two rooms and two bathrooms and a little front porch.   Each of the rooms was named after one of the national park's animals; the tiger room, the crocodile room, the horn bill, the rhino room, the dolphin room, etc. There was a fantastic communal dining room with long tables for meals together and enough land with lots of trees, a fish pond, and open space for the children to roam freely.  At night there was traditional Tharu dancing.  I had booked all 5 of the bungalows so that we could have the place to ourselves with plenty of room.   It could not have been a more perfect setting.  

When we got to Rhino lodge the staff and management were staring at us with an "oh no" sort of look on their faces.  One of the guides asked me to go and have a seat in their dining room to discuss our plans.  So I left the kids there outside the vans and sat in the dining room where I was served a glass of coca cola and slowly the manager of the lodge broke the news. 

A group of lovely Swiss Trekkers' who had been planning on doing a three week trek in Dhopla plans had gotten switched around and a travel agent and the hotel owner in Kathmandu had accidentally booked their stay at the last minute for the same night that we were supposed to be staying there.  One of the groups was leaving the next morning and the other wasn't leaving until after we left.  There was one bungalow left for us.  One bungalow, two bathrooms and four beds for over thirty people.  The manager said that they would have to shift most of us to another lodge that night.  I panicked and freaked for a minute but finally took a deep breath and said okay.

"But we still have our elephant rides right?  Our elephant rides?  I booked them two weeks ago.  We're supposed to ride first thing tomorrow morning.  I sent the list of names and birthdays."  

The manager looked at me silently.  

"Your slot was taken by another group.  The owner didn't make your tickets.  We just talked to the park rangers and they don't have a single slot to fit you in."

And that's when I lost it.  Right then and there I lost it.      

I fought so hard to hold back the tears.   I yelled and yelled some more.  It was not one of my better moments. 

"The children are starving.  Can you please give us some lunch and I'll take them back home this evening.  We've been planning this for months!  How could you do this to us?"

"Wait, you didn't eat on the ride?" the manager said.  

 "NO!!!!"  I screamed in my monster voice.  "NO!!!!!  I told you yesterday when when when (stuttering) I asked you to please prepare lunch for us.  I didn't want them to eat on the road because I knew some of them would be car sick!! WHO the heck did I talk to yesterday???"

My heart was beating a million times a minute and all I could think of were the children's eyes outside sitting by the vans beaming with excitement.  

"We'll cook up some noodles for you," the manager said quickly ordering to the kitchen staff "and I'll drive you down to the national park headquarters to talk with the rangers directly.  If we explain the situation maybe they'll open a slot for you."   

I walked outside trying to hide the panicked look on my face.  The kids know me very well and knew something was up.  I sent them into the dining room and told them that lunch was being made for us, asked them to be patient, and they marched silently into the dining hall.

I got in the jeep with the manager and jetted to to the park headquarters.  I spent an hour begging and pleading with every ranger in the park.  We called the head officers on the phone and they gave us an extra morning slot the next day at 6 o'clock sharp the next morning during the sunrise.  The management of the hotel had lost the list with all of our names and birthdays so I rewrote it and made up birthdays and got our tickets and I could finally breathe again.  (Thank you to the park for letting all of our children ride for free!)  I got back to the lodge and the kids had all eaten and were playing ball and running around, happy as ever.  

That evening we took a walk down to the elephant stables where there were at least ten elephants and little babies.  It was all of our first times up and close with elephants and take my word if you haven't ever seen one they really are some of the most incredible animals on this planet.  The anxiety of the day melted away.  I decided right then and there to take what we were given and do what we could.  

After the stables we walked down to a beautiful stretch of river with a rocky shore.  The kids collected their favorite stones and watched the deer across the river.  There was a little soccer field where they could play soccer with the village children.  We got back to the lodge as the sun was setting and had a big dinner.  By now the kids were exhausted but we stayed awake for the village dancing, set up our two rooms where we decided the small children and girls would sleep that night.

The boys, Marky, Prithi, Ubji and I hopped into the jeep and headed to another little lodge a few minutes up the road.  The boys couldn't have been happier.  It was like an adventure for them getting to go to a new place and sleeping in little mud huts with candles.  (Minus the bed bugs, yes as in "don't let the bed bugs bite.")  I also made the mistake of not informing Marky of Bhukta's sleeping tendencies.  He ended up in a bed with Bhukta and Sagar and got kicked the entire night.  (sorry!)

The next morning we woke up at 5 am and walked in the dark, crisp, cold air, along the river to the place where the elephants were going to pick us up.  We met the other half of our group and shortly after 5 huge mama elephants and two babies came to pick us up for our rides.  The ride was sooooo fun.  Right at the beginning we crossed a huge deep river on the elephants' backs.  The babies were swimming along side of us diving under the water and then coming up for air.  They were so playful.  We walked through meadows and jungles as the sun was rising.  The elephants ate their breakfast along the way and we talked to the elephant keepers whose life's work it is to take care of and protect them.  Most of these men having been doing this work for over 20 years.   It was definitely the highlight of our trip and something we'll all remember for the rest of our lives.  One of the best parts of the ride for me was watching Santosh sitting on the back of the elephant in front of me.  He looked like a little prince perched up there, eyes bright, moving his head from side to side trying to soak it all in.  Maya, staying true to character was pinching the other children on her elephant and had to be transferred mid air to sit with me.  Jordyn accounted it best, saying, she looked back and all she could see was Maya throwing a tantrum 15 feet in the air being passed from one elephant to the other.  Oh Maya. 

I know this is getting long so I will just say this:  The children were the happiest I've ever seen them.  We shared a lot of laughs, good meals, and if I learned anything it is to surrender to any and all plans and be in the moment.  

I abandoned the plans I'd had for the village tour and the Tharu museum and the conservation center.  We spent our time running along side the river collecting stones, swimming, playing soccer, checking out the elephant stables, getting up close to alligators and crocodiles, and a few feet from an angry rhino.  We shrieked with delight at the sight of deer and monkeys and played in an old log canoe.  We took an elephant ride through the jungle!!

On the ride home one of our vans got stuck trying to cross a river.  Everyone had to get out and push and push and push and it took us a good half an hour to get the van moving and out of the mud.  On the highway we got stopped by police and a ticket for our vans not having the right permit.  Then we hit a road block because of an accident and again, just about everybody vomitted.

But I just kept remembering our 26 children sitting on elephants riding through a beautiful jungle.  I mean seriously talk about dreams coming true.  It was all so so worth it.

I'd like to thank Jordyn and Marky, our volunteers for being here to share this with us.  I'd like to thank my incredible staff, the children's aunties and uncles.  We couldn't have done this without them.  I'd like to thank the park rangers of Bardia National Park.   I'd like to thank the elephants and their keepers.  I'd like to thank our donors and sponsors for making all of this possible.  I am so grateful.

Next up!  Pictures!!