"I was born in to a poor peasant family"

I am Tsering Dolma and come from a small village of in Amdo province as know as the east part of Tibet. I am 21 years old and the middle one among of my siblings. I have six family members including me and I was the most short-tempered one as well as selfish one comparing to the other three of my siblings. My great parents send me school when I was six years old even though my family situation was so poor. Whenever I saw a very honest person, it always reminds me the essence of my parents and villagers. The most of our villagers are lack of knowledge on writing and reading, but they are very co-operative and too honest. Sometimes, I really miss them very much under this complicated society.

Actually I have no any idea bout Tibetan issue when I was still in Tibet. I always thought that China was my cherished country and I had loved it a lot with a very stronger illusion. So, I made up my mind to come to India only for study, as my parents always mention that India is just like a heaven, where everything is available without any difficulty. But my parents never told me the reason why India is a special place for them, especially whenever they were talking about India, I could realize that there a very pathetic expression appeared from their wrinkled face.

However, I left my affectionate parents, relatives and friends behind me in the end of 2003. The same year I completed my class nine. With a depressed mind and lonely feeling, I said good bye to them.

On the first day of my journey to India, I stayed at Kumbum (the birth place of H.H. the Dalai Lama) and it was a wonderful place with a large number of monks in a huge monastery. But I could not see the beauty of that place because my mind wandered to the lamp of my parents. I got a very heavy homesick and nearly I went back to them. The next morning I closed my eyes and carried on my journey insistently.

After two days, I reached at Lhasa early in the morning. So, I did not get any place to go for a moment. In the first of my eye sight, I was the amazing Potala formed in a very majestically. It attracted my heart so deep that I did not even hear one of my companions was calling me many times till he touched me. We got a hotel with the help of somebody and stayed there only for fifteen days. I got a very wonderful influence by the natural environment of Lhasa. Unfortunately, I could not fell it peacefully, because wherever we were there was lots of Chinese police were to and fro. So, we spent the most of days inside of hotel with a narrowed mind.

It was a rainy evening and may be around 6 o' clock, we started to escape from Lhasa to India. On the way of our escapee, we did not get any horrible problems except to fear the Chinese army who stayed at Dam (The border of Tibet and Nepal.) It took only five days for us from Dam to Nepal, and we looked like a group of wild animals in the forest who were tried to escape from the cruel hunter within those five days. Sometimes, it rained like cats and dogs when we were walking in the forest. So, according to the effect of temperature, some of my companions got common cold and loose motion. It made us various and made the journey more difficult. When we reached at Nepal our fear was increased, because of the security of Nepal was so tight. It was possible the police of Nepal would put us in Chinese hand if they identified us not from Nepal. SO, we pretended to be Nepalise as much as we could. Finally we reached Tibetan reception centre in Nepal. A lot of Tibetans stayed at there and we noticed that they were also got many problems on their way coming to India. I was some of them could not move and were lying on the bed as they walked over the snow mountains and their feet were frozen. It seemed nobody there without any single wound and injure on their body because the climate differences. I too got a lot of wounds on my body.

I stayed there for more than one month without any money. I paid all these four thousands Yuan to our leader who showed us the way from Dam

to Nepal. Anyway, under the helpful hand of Tibetan exile government, it was free to eat and stay and travel from Nepal to Dharamsala. I got a very sharp feeling after the meeting. It was a sunny day and after break fast, we had a meeting that was arranged by members of reception centre in Dharamsala. They explained us about the current system of Tibetan exile government. At that time, I recognized myself and we were totally different from the Chinese government. For a moment, I pitied myself a lot and I cried. But tears could not come from my eyes instead of that snat came from my nose and I got an unbearable pain to my throat. It seemed something stopped my throat as it was very difficult to glup the saliva.

Under the preparation of reception centre at Nepal, we reached at Dharamsala without meeting trouble on our way and McLeod Ganj is a lovely place with lots of Tibetan. I was released from the tensions, nervous and fears after reaching there.

The unforgettable day of my life, on a Saturday morning, we, the fresh came from Tibet, were made a queue in front of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's temple and waited for an audience. We were in our best clothes and one by one entered the gate. His Holiness came to us with sympathetic smile and his blessing washed away all the stains of my mind for a moment. He asked us something, but I could not catch a single speech from him as he used Uzang

dialect, which is very different from Amdo, where I come from. Even though I could not understand him at that time, I am very proud to have a special leader.

Thereafter, I was send to T.C.V (Tibetan Children's' Village) in Suja. It is a very huge school with a big number of students, who come from Tibet directly. The facility of the school was good enough for the students, and the teachers were very sincere to the students. I completed class VIII there. After that I joined in VTC (Vocational Training Centre) at Dehradun in officially. There I completed two years diploma course in housekeeping successfully.

Now I am learning computer and English at E.S. Tibet under the great help of Lore Gerster family from Switzerland. They offer us with everything as well as caring us like their own children with full of warm heart. So, by taking this I am saying that thanks very much all these people who looked after us same as our parents in this refugee life. I wish they have a great life forever.

Thanking you

E.S.Tibet Student
Tseringdol