The Power of the Alphabet

CHAMELI WAIBA

Chameli Waiba, 37, of Bjrabarahi, Makawanpur, got married 25 years ago but is usually alone, without children or a husband. However, there is a perpetual glow and confidence in her face ever since she learned the first letters of her life 15 years ago and when she became ‘Chameli’ instead of ‘Chamili’. Chameli believes in the magic of the letters that have changed her life and her world.

The Power of the Alphabet

I believe in the alphabet because it has the power to change life. I realized the power concealed in the alphabet on the very first day I joined the adult literacy class. For the first time, I was introduced to letters that stood for my name. In discovering the Nepali alphabet, I discovered I was Cha-me-li and not Cha-mi-li as everyone used to call me. It felt like magic. A little loop of an ‘e’ for an ‘i’ changed my name!

          If two letters could change my name, then how much would I be able to transform my life if I understood all the letters? I spent that whole evening writing and rewriting my name. After that, I carried the spelling book with me while I went to collect fodder, weed the maize field, just everywhere, until I learned to write.

          Before learning how to write, my life was like the nearby Indrasarovar Lake, always stagnant. I carried the pain of a child marriage, a husband who did not support me, and object poverty. I barely had any skills or courage to do anything.

          But I noticed that the number of people learning to read and write was growing. And their lives were improving, too. I then realized it was neither wealth not beauty I lacked, but letters.

          As my new knowledge of words started to boost my confidence and courage, I made a resolution: Yes, my life has been like this, but my sisters, brothers, and I should be given education, as much as we would like. The immediate obstacle to this dream was the Tasar River. The village school was on the other side of the river. Children could not go to school during the monsoon because of flooding. I wanted to build a bridge over the river so that going to school would be simple. And so it started. In the beginning, few villagers helped me. Some even mocked the idea, saying it was only for me, calling the idea “Chameli’s Bridge”. But finally we got support, materials were collected, volunteer laborers were available, and the bridge was finally constructed.

          Now I cannot express my satisfaction of seeing children running to school over that bridge. It is a bridge of iron, a bridge of letters, a bridge of community. Nothing is achieved without the cooperation of all.

          I am now leading five women’s micro-savings groups. Ten or 20 rupees that used to be spent buying petty cosmetic items have been collected to make a fund of 300,000 rupees. We are palnning to open a small cooperative in the village soon. We also want to run permanent literacy classes for women and open a library.

          All this is the result of my knowing the alphabet, even though I learned it late. Letters have immense power. They have magic. The greatest thing in the world is the alphabet. That is my belief.