“I lost my hand to an accident while fishing, a long time ago. The last thing I remember was my fingers were still moving. When I woke up my hand was gone. There was no adult in that crowd who could say, ‘Take him to Kathmandu, take him to a hospital’. Losing my hand changed my life. From a hard working and a loving family man I became a recluse. I was depressed for many years. I had to reply on my family for everything. I couldn’t even tie a shoelace. Some people were really insensitive and would call me names. I would boil in anger. I knew I couldn’t spend my life in misery so I got up. And with little hope, I started looking for work. People would make up an elaborate story as to why they couldn’t offer me work. So I’d walk away heartbroken. Finally I found work looking after people’s house and property. I went wherever work took me. And life is spent. But my family was with me all the time. I look at them and thank god for the love I received from them. My children have also grown up to understand the predicament of their father and I am happy as I can be. That is an achievement for me, a big one, I think.” (Raj Bahadur Ghale, Barpak, Gorkha)