Lhasa, Tibet
Children
When people visit the orphanage, all the children are lined up and sing songs such as “You are my sunhsine”, but also a traditional Tibetan song. They are proud to show what they´ve learned and like to express their gratititude towards the visitors.
Memories of Xingfu
by Lydia McCallister (Pulaski VA, USA)
I’ve decided to call her “Xingfu” for her face has brought me much happiness. I stare at the picture on my desk and wonder what ‘my little girl’ is doing. My visit to the Dickey orphanage three years ago has had the most profound effect on how I have accepted each day since. My travels have taken me far away from home, and Tibet, and yet I am drawn to that smiling face from Lhasa. And, even though I was quite “blown away” by the country and the Potala, it was the orphanage that had the greatest emotional impact on me. The tour group that my husband and I had traveled with had planned the orphanage visit in its itinerary, and I am extremely grateful that OAT (Overseas Adventure Travel) for the inclusion of these types of visits in all of their tours. I have been searching the web for a while in hopes of finding more information about the orphanage. When I discovered your website, I was drawn back to a place and time that three years could not diminish in my mind. Our small group entered the orphanage, not too sure of ourselves or how to react to homeless waifs. But, what we discovered was that these children did indeed have a home, and the warmth and love that they freely gave away to strangers touched us all very deeply (so much so that we all had teary eyes upon our departure, as I am sure countless other visitors since then have experienced). BUT, one little girl grabbed my hand and clung to my little finger for almost my entire stay at her adopted home. She sang songs with the other children, but quickly grabbed my finger again when she had finished. I did not get her name for our visit was all too brief and Mama Dadhon (Dazhen) was so busy answering everyone else’s questions that I could speak with her. So, “Xingfu” and I just stayed close together and exchanged emotions with the ‘language of eyes.’
I had hoped to make a return visit to the orphanage before leaving Lhasa, but my plans were circumvented by pseudo-military types who came to our hotel in the middle of the night demanding passports from the foreign visitors. Our guide was able to defuse the incident, but another trip (other than our departure to the airport) was out of the question. My hope is to establish some small conduit through which I could communicate with “Xingfu”; The Internet has definitely helped, and quite significantly, in providing the means. Now, if I could discover her name, perhaps we could renew a connection begun three years ago and I could reciprocate with the same love and warmth that was so freely offered then, bringing to mind that love is the only thing that is not diminished when given away.
Tashi, Dawa, Ngodup and Tenzin
Tashi (14), Dawa Tsering (13), Ngodup Wango (9) and Tenzin Thinley (1) are the children of a Chamdo nomad family. When their father passed away because of poor health and their mother suffered from foot injuries, they donated their land and yaks to a temple and moved to Lhasa. Tashi left the house to look for work. During his absence his mother gave birth to baby Tenzi but passed away shortly after. In January 2007, the children were brought to Dickey’s by Lhasa journalists.
Yangdol
The newest arrival at Dickey´s is the five month-old Tenzin Yangdol. In December, when everyone is wrapped up in layers of clothing in a Lhasa of -10°C, the baby was abandoned in a cardboard box on the road to the Sera Monastery. A 82 year old lady heard a crying sound on her way to the monastery. When she turned around she noticed three dogs running around a box. She followed the crying sound and found a baby in the box. She wrapped the baby in her sweatshirt and brought the child to the monastery to warm up. The old lady was not able to keep the child herself. She lives in poverty in Shigatse. Thus the monks contacted Mama Dadhon at Dickey´s Orphanage to ask whether she could keep the child. Since then, Yangdol lives at the orphanage.
Dawa
When Dawa was asked to draw what it feels like to be an orphan, he made this beautiful painting. Dawa Tsering is 14 years old and attends fifth grade. His mother did not survive childbirth and his father died from lung cancer when Dawa was only two years old. He lived with his aunt until the age of nine. His aunt then married and had a child of her own. He has been at Dickey´s from the very start. He is a very responsible young man and therefore became group captain. He loves musical instruments, especially the guitar. He would like to become a famous Tibetan pop singer.
Dhodak
The seventeen month old baby Dhodak. was abandoned right after birth. An elderly lady found him at the Pottala. The baby was brought to the police station where they transferred him to the hospital with a high fever. They diagnosed pneumonia. When Mama Dadhon watched the evening news and heard this story, she decided to keep the child if no one picked it up from the hospital.
Dhonyoe
Dhonyoe was abandoned by his parents at the Gampala Pass. Tour guides found the child and one of them tried to raise the boy himself. Because the deaf child was often aggressive, he was tied to a chair. The man could no longer handle the child and when he heard about Dickey´s, he decided to ask them for help. Dhonyou means “meaningful”. Mama Dadhon chose this name hoping that one day the child will be able to speak and hear.