The Water Boy | facemandu
There’s a lot of problem of drinking water in Thamel. My house is also not any exception. We have to
buy drinking water from water tankers twice a month.
It was a cold night. May be at 10 PM. Wednesday night. The water tanker arrived. There was a driver
and a boy. The boy took out the pipe and did the necessary things to transfer the water. We buy from
these guys in a regular basis. So I know the driver but the boy was new. I was looking at him while he
was doing his work. Since he was just a small boy, he did all his tasks with all full of zeal and confidence.
As the water was going from the tanker to my house’s tank, I decided to have a talk with that boy.
I started asking his name, where he live, his age, how did he end up here, etc, etc. He told me he was 14
years old and from Nuwakot. He had recently come to Kathmandu. Looking for jobs, he finally found a
job in a water tanker place. He told he studied till class 6 and their parents couldn’t afford study fees
after that. I asked him where he lives Kathmandu. I was surprised after his reply to my question. He said
he lives in the same water tanker truck in which he arrived. Meaning, he sleeps there every night! He
gets his daily wage and fills his stomach with that money he earned. I was so surprised and didn’t know
how to react after what he said to me. But the main important fact is, he was all smiles and cheers. He
didn’t have a single tone of sadness. Another thing he told me that he wants to buy a mobile phone. His
every other friends have phone but not him.
This little boy can be an inspiration to all of us. Know the value of what you have and never give up to
reach your dreams. There’s a famous quote by Dennis P. Kimbro saying, “Life is 10% what happens to us
and 90% how we react to it”. This line truly depicts my conversation with that little boy.
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