Page 26 - 2016-10

gets treated equal, and where everyone can find
their own truth. Holding that true energy will
inspire human kind.
We really need to find a balance right now.
I feel we are very imbalanced which is why
humanity is suffering, the plants are suffering, the a slave to a factory owner or to a husband. I was
birds are suffering, and the climate is changing. It
is becoming a universal problem and we need to
become united in finding balance. I feel humans
are one of the most intelligent species, and if
we find true value in being a human, slowly
everything will come into balance. We all are
connected and we all are one.
You mentioned that you learned to be self
sustaining when you left home. Please tell us
a little about how you survived and what you
learned when you moved to the city.
I worked for almost one and half years in
a sweat shop. I still remember I had very tiny
room around 10x10. I worked in that space with
three other people, eating, living, sleeping, and
working. Sometimes I would sleep on pile of
T-shirts. Shirts we were exporting to a Western
rich country. I worked 12 to 18 hours a day and
made less than $5 a day. I worked so hard for
one of the agents, and they didn’t pay me. They
owed me twenty thousand Rupees around ($200)
and refused to pay. I had escaped one form of
slavery only to find another. That is when I felt
I needed an education.
Almost by magic, I found a teacher who
offered to teach me for free. I started to study
26 Volume 3 Issue 4 - OCTOBER 2016
and work independently. I began dreaming
about setting up my own training center for
disadvantaged women so they could find a fair
way out of misery. I dreamed of saving children
from forced marriage and slave labor. It is one
of the hardest feelings a human can face, being
able to escape from that system but there are
many more who didn’t.
I knew I had to help free them through
support and education. So I did. At 16 years old,
I was working with six disadvantaged women.
One year later, I had my own store in central
Kathmandu called Local Women’s Handicrafts.
When I turned 18, my family started to arrange
my marriage. This time many friends and family
members supported my mission. I was able to
convince some of my family that my life had a
different purpose. With the help of my women,
friends and family, we were able to create a
space just outside of Kathmandu where women
could come together and work in their own safe
community. The house is called Local Women’s
Han dicrafts.
You’ve been a Toastmaster since May 2016.
How has Toastmasters helped you to spread your
message?
Toastmasters has definitely helped me to get
over my nervousness. I gained confidence and
personal growth. Teresa Hovland, my mentor,