Dear
all
First,
a huge thanks to all who gave sponsorship money in advance and
for your kind faith in me. I must admit that I was feeling good
before the race – I thought I was better trained this year
(comfortably completing training runs of 3 ½ hours) and
was quietly confident that I could beat my last record. Did it
happen on the day itself?
 I
started well, maintaining a steady pace. People were rushing past
me from all around. I was determined not to fall into the trap
of starting too quickly again, and just ignored what was happening
around me. The heat of the day was gradually picking up, and I
could feel the beads of sweat slowly trickling down. At 3 miles,
I picked up the first bottle of water, took a quick sip and continued
on my way. I was gaining more confidence and was feeling good:
6 miles no problem; 7 miles no problem. The live music from the
side of the road and the cheers of hundreds and thousands of well
wishers offering all sorts of treats – water, lucozade,
sweets, bananas and even sandwiches - continued to inspire me
and fill me with confidence. What a fantastic atmosphere. What
a joy to be a part of it.
I
had run for almost 3 ½ hours when I saw I had just crossed
the 17 mile marker. I did a rough calculation mentally: if I could
continue at the pace I should be able to finish in around 5 hours.
Just then I felt a slight twinge of cramp in my left leg. I thought
I could afford a short break and walk a just a few paces to ease
the cramp. I think that was a major mistake! I tried to run, but
from that point on I simply could not lift my legs to run again!
Once again, I regret to say I have failed to run all 26.2 miles.
I guess that just means even more reason to try again next year!
 But,
at least I made it to the end – an achievement of which
I should really be proud given the record temperatures. I was
just ecstatic to see the finishing line and, of course, Mai, who
had been patiently waiting for me for over an hour. Her sweet
send-off early in the morning and her welcome at the finish was
a huge comfort to support me in my severely bruised (both physically
and mentally) state! I could not have returned back home without
her.
Once
again, many thanks for your kind support and for all of you who
have sponsored me. I should be grateful if any who have not yet
forwarded the money pledged to KTS (and, of course, anyone else
who now feels they would like to donate!) could do so as soon
as possible. Also, we have a kind volunteer to join me next year:
anyone else interested in running with us would be very welcome.
Please do let me know as soon as possible and I will do my best
to organise entry.
-oOo-
It
makes me feel rather old to note that KTS (www.kumbeshwar.com)
will be 25 years old in June 2008. To mark this milestone, I would
like to dedicate my participation in next year’s London
Marathon to 5 special people, along with my family, without whose
support and sacrifice it would have never been possible to establish
KTS. I would like to express my personal gratitude to Jan Hopkins,
Phoebe Ravenhall, Sally Jose, Chikako Shibata and Rudra Khadgi
and my dear family for all their support, dedication, sacrifice
and hard work they have put in establishing KTS.
With
your support we have been able to do so much there at KTS. I still
remember the fateful day when I went to my brother to borrow Rs
500 (about £7) to buy film to take photos of the children
and the families from the Pody community to apply for funding.
Today, more than 5,000 families benefit directly from KTS. Let
me write a bit about somebody in whose life your support has made
so much difference.
A
single mother, Soma Tamang was struggling to up bring her 3 children
Archana, Ram and laxman. Katherine (an American expat working
in Nepal) took pity on her and introduced her to the KTS in 1989.
On her arrival, she was given a room at the founder Mr Khadgi’s
old house and the children Archana and Ram were admitted at the
KTS hostel for destitute children. Soma was familiar with Nepali
alphabets and basic counting, but she had never been to a school.
In
1990 Soma was admitted to the KTS 2 years’ training programme
in carpet weaving. The programme is based on 60% vocational study
and 40% theory. The practical side involved training in spinning,
dying, weaving and finishing; the theory involved basic education
in Nepali, English, Maths, and Social Studies based on the 5th
and 6th grade curriculum set by the Government of Nepal Education
Department.
 Soma
successfully completed her studies and training in all areas in
1992. During her training period, she was provided with a nominal
living allowance (as are all trainees at KTS) of Rs 300 (about
£4 then) per month. From her allowance she had to pay about
Rs 150 for food and rent. After completing training programme
she joined carpet weaving production unit. Since then she has
been working in the KTS carpet weaving production unit, where
she can weave about 5 square metres of rug a month (video
clip of Soma weaving). She continues to live at the founder’s
old house and pays a nominal rent of about Rs 100 a month.
The
job at the KTS carpet weaving production unit has helped Soma
to become financially independent. Perhaps more significantly,
Soma’s involvement with KTS has helped ensure that her children
have had the start in life that she didn’t, breaking the
vicious circle that would most likely have seen them working or
begging rather than receiving an education. Instead, her children
were fully cared for at the KTS hostel. They were provided with
beds, food and admitted to the KTS primary school. After completing
primary school, they were sponsored by KTS to continue further
education.
 The
eldest, Archana, completed high school two years ago. She is continuing
with the equivalent of “A” levels at a local school.
Since completing High school (“O” level equivalent)
she has been able to earn pocket money by assisting with wool
distribution at the KTS knitting department and has recently joined
as an assistant in the KTS hostel on a part time basis. Crucially,
this enables her to live in the hostel free of charge, while her
education is paid for by KTS. She hopes to become a designer.
 Ram
just sat for his high school SLC (“O” level equivalent)
exams. He helps on a part time basis at the KTS carpentry department.
Like his sister, he is hoping to continue further education and
become an accountant.
-oOo-
Once
again, your support in whatever form you are able to offer, is
much appreciated. KTS has seen many success stories like Soma
and her family, but the poverty in Nepal is such that many other
families are not so fortunate. We would like to be able to help
them all.
Many
of you have purchased various goods from us through our website
(www.comolongmo.com) and
at the Greenwich and Spitalfield markets. Once again, we thank
you for shopping with us; we hope you will agree that our products
make lovely presents for any occasion. As ever, word of mouth
is extremely valuable and we would be very grateful if you could
recommend your friends and family to shop with us, or even just
to introduce them to us as people who might be interested in signing
up for these newsletters.
Finally,
let me leave you with another reminder that I do presentations
with slides of KTS and the Kumbeshwar region of Nepal, which have
been very warmly received. If you know of any local clubs, charities,
churches, voluntary organisations, schools or other bodies looking
for a speaker on an interesting subject, I would be extremely
grateful for their contact details or your recommendation.
Thank
you for kind sponsorship and continued support.
Regards
Kabindra
and Comolongmo family
www.comolongmo.com
Email: info@comolongmo.com
View
other newsletters:
Newsletter 15, Thursday, 29 Septebmer
2011
Newsletter
14, Saturday, 16 October 2010
Newsletter 13, Monday, 13 Septebmer
2010
Newsletter 12, Monday, 12 July
2010
Newsletter 11, Monday, 15 May
2010
Newsletter 10, Tuesday, 18
December 2009
Newsletter 9, Friday, 16 October
2009
Newsletter
8, Thursday, 5 March 2009
Newsletter 7, Sunday, 21 December 2008
Newsletter
6, Wednesday, 8 October 2008
Newsletter 5, Thursday, 4 September
2008
Newsletter 4, Saturday, 1 September
2007
Newsletter
3, Friday, 4 May 2007
Newsletter
2, Wednesday, 18 April 2007
Newsletter 1, Tuesday, 7 November
2006
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