Manmaya Foundation: Education & Health
A story behind the foundation:
Manmaya foundation is a salute to my three significant single motherly figures of my life who are my boju (Granny), saili thuliama (aunt) and my mom.
My single mom volunteered as a community health worker for almost 23 years and does not know whether she is widowed or not.
My mom is not yet sure whether she is widowed or not though she wears pote (a colourful glass bead neckless worn by married women for good luck) and rato chura (red bangles), which are for married women. Her husband, I don’t prefer to call my dad since he wasn’t the one, left her when she was around 10 weeks pregnant with me in my embryonic period, she had recalled infuriated while giving me warm shower during winter years back in a remote village called Dubekol in Khotang district of Nepal.
I was born in cold capital city, Kathmandu, then my boju (granny) took me to village when I was just 22 days old to since my single mother needed more supports as much as a fatherless son needs in a patriarchal society. My grandmother was widowed.
Upon returning to village, my mom started volunteering as a community health worker for about 23 years. She supported children, youth and women with tireless days and nights of distributing polio drops, mandatory syringes to newly born babies, accompanying women during labour pains and child birth, highlighting hygienic ways of living and being vocal about injustice, education and health education.
Saili thuliama died of hypotension when she was working in the field. She financed my schooling till I was undergraduate.
My aunt, saili thuliama, was introvert however we used to laugh a lot when she unintentionally used to fart while sitting by the fire during evening dinner time while my mom was cooking for us.
She had taken a fatherly role in our family since she used to take care of external affairs at home like negotiating with people, working in fields with other villagers, going to market to buy groceries which took 3 hours of uphill walk, and most significantly she handled the finance with my granny. She and granny supported my education financially amongst other including emotional and moral.
One day, when I was travelling I heard a sad news that she passed away while working in the field when no one noticed that she fainted on the ground and painfully took her final breath. No one in the family even herself knew that she was suffering from low blood pressure (hypotension). During that time, she was alone in village since my mom had entered the valley again and my granny had already passed away.
Why did my mom leave her home alone? Did she ever return to village? What happened to my mom in the valley which had ruined her and my mental state after the death of my saili thuliama? How did we end up in the street? I will definitely answer these prominent questions of my life because they have shaped who I am today.
My boju carried me home when I had no home and just 22 days old. I miss her signature fried rice scooped for my tiny hands after school and her defence when my mom was angry with me.
My boju (Granny) …