Lhamo part-2

It was in 2004, when I first met Karma Lhamo as my classmate in Class IX at Drukgyel Higher Secondary School.

When we met for my 26th birthday and she gifted me
 'The Lord of The Rings'. Ever since I talk the Hobbit
language. She to be blamed :P

She and I were in the same morning class-cleaning group. And one morning I was late for the social work; I hurried to my class, fling my backpack to the nearest table and grabbed a broom ready to sweep. Reminiscing that day, it was as if the universe had conspired us to fight so he gave us a silent place, because although we had other classmates in the class-cleaning routine for that morning, only Karma Lhamo was sweeping the empty classroom floor, everyone else was out of sight. I hastily moved to one row and asked her if she had already swept that row (because my intention was to sweep it if she hadn’t already or to move to the other row otherwise). But with some murmur I didn’t hear of, she shot me a squinted eye look (migom), or at least I felt so. And just like that we were foes without even fighting a battle. The academic year had just begun, and thus we stopped talking to each other before we even got any closer.

She now denies about the migom, and maybe she is right, maybe she didn’t, maybe I reacted too quick (for that’s what I do best) because after knowing her for more than a decade now, I bet she wouldn’t just have given me that look for that one question. But that fateful day, O! I saw it! Haha.

Thus, we didn’t talk for that whole year and the next, until it was my birthday and I was giving sweets to everyone and I gave her too. Although the reason for not-talking had been long forgotten and forgiven, we had already crept into the awkward-to-talk-again phase, so after that we just smiled at each other.

I have only faint memories of those two years. It was after the 10^th results, that it all began. There was class division again for Class XI, more new students from more schools had come in for the admission. And fate had it; best friends in class X were separated again. Pema Lhamo and I were separated. Karma Lhamo and Shreejana Pradhan, Karma Lhamo’s then best friend were separated. Karma Lhamo and I were placed in Class XI/A, while Pema Lhamo was taken to XI/B. And although Pema Lhamo and my class were separated just by a wall, we went up to my new class teacher to ask for my transfer to the other class, he denied and so I was stuck in Section A.

Since Karma Lhamo and I were both sort of impaired without our best friends, we fast became the new best friends and soon inseparable. We shared our desks in the front row for the subsequent two years never fighting again. While I worked on Biology projects in the Math classes, she did Math assignments in the Biology classes. Math teacher frowned at me, Biology teacher frowned at her.

Pema Lhamo and we would meet during the intervals and lunch together and so the three of us were best friends now. 

My Lady Love

We had other friends too, those who were the sidekicks like in the movies :P Karma Lhamo’s parents ran a grocery shop, still does, and she would bring us petty gifts from the lucky-tip sachets. She would already show me the wrapped gifts and let me choose the prettiest, and then just so the others won’t feel discriminated, she would flaunt them in front of us all and let us choose. Because I already know, I would pick the prettiest and we would silently chuckle satisfied. ‘I still have the tinniest mug and the joker tray you gave me. They are at display at home.’ Well, that is the thing about me, I don’t forget who gave me what. I’m very careful and particular with my stuff. I don’t lose them until I decide to give them away, and at this I have to stop talking about myself :P

Karma Lhamo cannot still look up to my Acho, when she is at my place and he is there, she looks the other way, up, and down and any way just so to avoid meeting his eyes. I don’t think they ever talked to each other. She narrates her fear of him after he yelled at us. There was this lengo (mental) who walked around Drukgyel with patang tied up his waist. And there were rumors he lifted a girl’s kira when he got his chance. So one evening we were walking home after school and we passed him by, scared, we ran up my home shrieking and shutting the door loud behind. That’s when Acho must have got startled and shouted at us, and shouted loud for she still fears him. Haha. I don’t exactly remember this incident though. This is from what she later told me. As for Pema Lhamo, she makes good friends with him.

Karma Lhamo is the kind of people who says, “Drive safe. Let me know as soon as you get home”, “Text me when you get there”, and when I forget to let her know, she calls :) She is the kind everyone needs at least one in their lives.

She is the kind who cannot give "no" for an answer. She puts anything and anyone but herself before herself. ‘So the next time you sit for any interview and you are asked of your weaknesses, you should say, “saying no is”. Because it really is, unlike other people who use it to hide their other weaknesses, or just use it because it is common?’ But darling, you cannot make everyone happy; it’s not your job in the first place. Being so kind is truly a blessing and a curse. I just pray people appreciate this beautiful persona of yours and not take advantage of it and do anything that hurt you.

Frodo, Sam and Pippin, 
I would like to refer ourseleves as :P

Abridge, I have known Pema Lhamo for 16 years, been best friends for 13. I have known Karma Lhamo for 13 years, been best friends for 11. Doesn’t it feel fantastic to have your childhood best friends as your teen-age best friends and then the same best friends as your adulthood best friends? And if we live long to see, I promise we will be awesome grannies. Best friends till the end. Always and forever.

What I mean is, if I were Frodo and I were to choose Sam and Pippin to accompany me for my perilous task. I would choose the two of you. 

I love you guys to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean and back.