NOVEMBER 2023
Shanta’s teeth gritted sharply in the cold, the sound cutting through the ominous hum of the powerful earthquake that had destroyed her home and school, as we wrapped her in a warm blanket. Her eyes looked around for her mother, or any familiar face but all she could see was a group of volunteers, strangers to her, unloading large boxes of supplies from the vans, approaching and consoling her, beside the ruins of her home.
It took us hours to gather our courage and explain to her that she has lost her family forever. Her heart couldn’t be warmed by the fragile fabric of a blanket. Nevertheless, it wasn’t a time to dwell upon the lingering emotional turmoil caused by the lives already lost. We stood up, set our eyes ahead, and thought about the lives that could still be saved, like Shanta’s.
Without losing any time, we delivered 175 blankets, 100 socks, 100 cholos, 100 mufflers, and 100 woolen caps to safeguard individuals from the harsh weather conditions, shuddering in grief and cold. We were able to provide 100 tents with the support of the World Vision Advocacy Forum (WVAF), along with warm wear and food items.
Laxmi was still sobbing, rubbing her pregnant belly when she laid down inside the sleeping tent. “कति अभागि मेरो बच्चो!” she kept saying to herself. How unfortunate is my child! Her tears reminded us about the profound consequences of the earthquake on pregnant women. We inquired about the number of pregnant women on the site and it turned out to be a significant number.
On our next delivery, we included protein diets for mothers and babies including mixed beans, dry fruits, saatu lentils, chaku, oil, and a nano kit to keep them warm. We ensured that pregnant women and children got extra consideration in our earthquake relief campaign.
We saw Laxmi talk to herself as if she were consoling her own heart amidst the crisis and when she failed, she would weep again. This sight told us that food, blankets, and tents weren’t anywhere enough to spark a fire of hope in their eyes. We conducted psycho-social counseling, especially to the women and children who were in a constant state of fear and dread.
Time and again, Shanta would shriek and leap up on her feet, as if she sensed the shifting of the tectonic plates underneath her. She told us that she loved drawing and used to spend her free time in school sketching her teachers’ faces.
What a great initiative she took when she taught her friends to draw when we gathered children and indulged them in recreational activities such as painting, and dancing, and gave gifts with warm sweaters, warm socks, woolen caps, toys, colors, pencils, etc. However, the fear was still evident in the children and other victims of the earthquake. We found out that their illness and medical conditions such as asthma, cold, and fever were holding them back in the process of recovery.
We started a medical camp at Kushe VDC with a team of doctors from Bir Hospital where children were found to be traumatized from the earthquake that hit at midnight. We built a temporary school at Nalghad-7 as a short-term replacement for Shree Janabikash Aadharbhut Vidyalaya School which was destroyed by the earthquake. We imagined Shanta, accompanied by several other children, sitting once more in a classroom, surrounded by books and papers, eagerly anticipating learning and leaving their fears behind.
The people of Jajarkot are facing an unprecedented crisis and we must come together as a global community to offer our support and assistance. Contact Warming Hearts Nepal if you’d like to support us and make a difference in their lives.
