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Posted
on 06-Mar-02 07:42 AM
Article Courtsey
{ http://www.sebsonline.org/forum/forum_view.asp?F=1&T=15856 } & Sunday Post
Nepalese in America
Most Nepalese in America do not feel that they belong here and yet America tries quite hard to make you feel at home, like a stepmother trying to win your love to impress your father, her husband.
Nuru Lama
It is said that home is where the heart is but the heart is nowhere. You thought you could mix like sugar in water (just a little stir!) but are confronted by your awkward patchiness on the American landscape. The seeming multi-ethnic tapestry looks more and more like a forced hodgepodge. Is this the story of a migratory bird that when spring comes will fly back to its Himalayan nests or of some endangered species in search of a new home, a final escape from the threat of the nightly poachers and devouring carnivores in its own land?
For the thousands of Nepalese living in America today, Nepal is a bitter, sweet tale; a mother for whom you harbour both intense love and hate; a broken relationship for which feelings still linger. Being far from the people you know and the place that you call home is hard. Harder is to rationalize a life lived in a faraway land where you feel culturally estranged, politically insignificant and the strong undercurrents of a white capitalistic establishment rocking your dreamboat. This is a typical immigrant story, of hope and despair.
Even with the wretched poverty, political decadence and the insurgency in Nepal, somehow life in Nepal felt more rooted, laden with a richness of puranic-style sublime meanings. But the eulogies end there. Here in America hard work pays off, good education mostly leads to good careers and certainly the dollar goes a long way compared to the Nepali rupee. Most Nepalese in America do not feel that they belong here and yet America tries quite hard to make you feel at home, like a stepmother trying to win your love to impress your father, her husband. The American media is awash with talks of cultural diversity, religious freedom, and rights of immigrants (legal and illegal). Although post-September 11, there is a heightened sense of skepticism and fear of foreigners, this reaction can only be considered natural and one hopes transient.
American meritocracy may be more wishful thinking than reality but certainly opportunities do abound here. A successful immigrant maybe an exception rather than the norm but at least America gives you the hope. Hope, that very precious of human qualities, which sustains life and moves mountains, and so sorely lacking in our homeland. The sight of Chinese businessmen, Indian doctors and African American leaders is a constant reminder that you too can rise up the ranks in America. The American dream is a lovely self-infatuation, treading the borders between hubris and self-confidence. To draw from American literature, here the Emersonian individual takes the Frostian "road less travelled." Back home, Devakota’s Muna pleads Madan to not leave home for fear of wild animals and praises the satisfaction of "saga ra sisnu."
The Nepalese in America is a Nepali microcosm, from Mechi to Mahakali. There are Nepalese studying, and working in various professional fields but majorities perform the low-end menial tasks that only immigrants take. Thus, you will find Nepalese doing the ‘dirty’ work at the restaurants, grocery stores and construction sites, to name a few. America is the battleground for modern-day lahures, valor dollarized and measured in sweat quantities. Back home, ‘dirty’ work is considered demeaning and education is a way to not work. Karmachari’s are famous for their reckless work ethic. Hard labour may not be a pleasant way to teach respect for work and those who perform it but some things are best learnt the hard way. Nepali politicians should be put through this regimen to teach them some urgently needed lessons.
{see part II for continued story due to server space}
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