Summary
In Chapter I, Conor Grennan, the author of the book, narrates about his three-month volunteering experience at an orphanage in Nepal. It is the first but crucial step to allude to what he will do later on other chapters. Actually, the initial reasons that he decided to go to Nepal are to prove to others like his family and friends that his life is extraordinary. He worked for 8 years in Prague, but he was bored with his life and quit his job. He planned to travel around the world for a year and he thought volunteering in Nepal as a first destination would look better and decrease the blames toward him about his plan. However, the situations of Nepal that was in a civil war were worse that he expected as well as some living conditions like unsanitary toilets. He had to watch a presentation for the volunteer program, but he could not concentrate because it was boring. After the orientation, he visited a native family in a village, and he felt cultural differences like food, eating style, religion, and of course language that he never experienced before. Then, he realized that he was in different place. For example, ‘Dall bhat’ is the traditional Nepalese food eaten by 90 percent of the people, twice a day. He could not eat this food because it was too spicy for him. After the orientation, he was assigned to Godawari, which is the Little Princes Children’s Home. At ‘the blue metal gate’ that led into the Little Princes Children’s Home, he suddenly realized how he did not want to walk through that gate. He just wanted to tell others that he volunteered at an orphanage. At first, he did not know how to begin volunteering in the orphanage, but he received a warm welcome from the children. The orphanage, established by Sandra, has four other volunteers; Jenny, Chris, Farid and Sandra, and there are eighteen children including 16 boys and 2 girls. He introduced himself to the children as Conor, but he felt the language difference because children would pronounce his name as ‘Krondor’. After the introduction, they had a dinner, and then he recognized one new eating habit, which is called ‘juto’. In Nepali culture, once a person touches his food, it is considered unclean and cannot be shared with other people. He felt guilty about dumping food in his life. After he got into the facility, he bonded well with the children by playing some games including a new game, which is named ‘carrom.’ He also had to teach science even though he had no experience. The children were surprised about the author’s culture when they found out that he ate beef. However, one day, a strange person whose name is ‘Golkka’ came to the orphanage, and he never sees him. Sandra said that he is a person who took the children from their villages, and a child trafficker. The author noticed that some of them are not orphans but victims of human trafficking, and there was a secret behind the children’s happiness and pureness. As well, he reminded again that Nepal is in the civil war through Sandra’s experience captured by Nepali soldiers. Two days before he leaves after three-month volunteering, many children at an orphanage asked to him that he would come back or not. He was not sure because there is nothing to do in here. However, at the same time, he felt desperate sadness and understood this kind of emotions his mother has sometimes felt when he returned to Prague. He went to back to children’s room, and then surely said to them. “I’ll come back in one year”.
Analysis
Through the paper, I would like to analysis about the ideas how the author promoted his thought in chapter I.
First, at the beginning in the chapter I, the author describes about his personal backgrounds and the reasons that he decides to go to Nepal. It is very crucial part in the book because his initial thought to go to Nepal and later thought to leave to Nepal is completely different, and it is shown how his changed recognitions impact his life and eighteen children’s life at an orphanage.
Second, in the chapter I, the author represents about Nepali situation that is a developing country in a civil war like tight security, unsanitary toilets, lack of infrastructure, and poor living conditions. Through description of those, the author seems to want people who live in better conditions to think and reflect about their life, and then let them change their habit of waste. Even sometimes the author feels guilty about his past life style habits like dumping food and overuse of plastic bags. As well, although their living condition is not good, the children’s do not feel any discomfort. They look happier than other people. The author wants to say about materialism does not equal to happiness. Another reason is that it might be the reason to request the help to them.
Third, the author introduces about Nepali cultures that is distinguished from American culture like some eating habits like ‘juto’, some games like ‘carrom’, some food like ‘dall baht’ and so on. Every country has their own culture and tradition, and the author wants to show their different cultures that he experience.
Last, the author talks about the main theme of the book; ‘the child trafficking.’ It is very serious problem that is happening in Nepal. The author just says about the guy who is a trafficker and the situation why the children came to the orphanage in chapter I, but it is enough description about how serious it is. The child traffickers tell a lie to poor parents for their children’s safety, and then take and use it as cheap labors. Without a doubt, the author wants to tell and inform this serious problem to other people around the world, and needs to solve them with international support.
