The Nepali Dream is a concept. America has a beloved saying called the American Dream. For most people, living the American Dream means to be financially successful and owning a home. The Nepali Dream is about the aspirations that Nepalese living outside of Nepal have. Most Nepalese living outside of Nepal want to contribute something meaningful to Nepal whether it is in their field of work or through nonprofit work. We should aspire to have a Nepali Dream.
Thousands of people, mostly students leave Nepal and go to foreign countries every year- primarily for educational purposes. Each individual leaves Nepal and take with them their goals and aspirations to a foreign land. They also take with them a sense of determination and will to succeed in the new world.
Through my travels and conversations with Nepali people living in different parts of the US, I have found that most of our aspirations are very similar. Many of us hope that we can someday go to Nepal and contribute in our own way to a country we left years ago. Others think about contributing in some way while living abroad. After having achieved some level of career and financial success in a foreign country, most Nepalese want to someday go back and contribute their time in helping the country. Dreams like these resonate amongst many Nepali people living abroad.
Some of my fellow colleagues have spent their summer vacations in Nepal volunteering at Maiti Nepal or working on wireless projects with visionaries like Mahabir Pun. These are some of the ways individuals living abroad have become involved in Nepal. Some even have left their jobs and gone back to Nepal to concentrate their full efforts in doing something for the betterment of the country. Some are also contributing their time and resources through established nonprofit organizations such as Help NEPAL Network (HeNN) and Nepal Youth Foundation (NYF).
It is great to see people who have lived abroad for many years devote their time and resources to help their motherland. It’s easy to become immersed into the foreign country’s culture and lose sight of how much difference each one of us can make to Nepal even while living overseas. I am very proud to see Nepalese living in different corners of the world and still finding ways to help the country. I feel that we have a responsibility to contribute in some form to the country that we all love. No matter where we are in the world, we are all from the same land. The Nepali Dream is definitely something to aspire to.
What is your Nepali Dream?