Forest Fire Volunteers From Sherubtse

It was 5’o clock in the evening of 20^th December, and I could sense the icy air touching my dark skin. I saw someone quivering aside me and hear the chattering of teeth at the backside but none went missing from the freezing hall for hours. The goal behind tolerating the wintry atmosphere for hours inside old outsized hall was to ring the gong of alertness so to keep the communities awake about the causes and effects of wild flames. I thought if it were only an extravaganza then I would rather prefer to stay home and watch motion picture, but my innocent villagers may possibly have thought the other way. During the episode, I did not spot anyone dozing due to variety in the agenda of awareness or otherwise they would usually have forty winks even in the daylight. Usually during awareness gathering, the communities cannot wait long for age old method of monologue talking (blah, blah, and blah) but this time they were in high spirits to watch the angel like girls boogieing on the stage, and listen to the comedy of every boy. This group of artists, ladies and gentlemen, is ‘Forest Fire Awareness Volunteers’ from the oldest college of our Nation, the only legendary Sherubtse College or also known as ‘Shercol’. They are the final year members of disaster management team .

Relation between forest fire and Buddhism 

The awareness programme includes songs, dances, plays, presentations, and question-answering session. The show though presented in comic manner, in it the messages of how the wild flames starts and to what extend it spoils our livelihood were clearly in plain sight. The question and answering session was attention grabbing filled with laughter in every corner when answered wrongly and with a chewing gum as trophy aside applause. In other words, the programme is out of ordinary. The drama reflects of how wild flames starts by careless burning of agricultural debris, making fires for chasing wild pests at night, picnicking and throwing cinders into bushes after smoking. It also shows how the wild flames spread extensively when culprit after having fire accident leaves the scene without extinguishing it or informing to concern personal fearing about the penalties if caught.  At that very moment, the laughter was heard at the highest pitch which sometimes tells how true the drama was.

Drama on causes and effects of  Forest Fire

When the time stroke 8:30 o’clock, the college artists had lot more to display for the audience but gradually the applauding hands were lessening and cheering voices diminishing. The artists are to present the ‘Fire Rules, 2012’ which was the crux of the show but the walls and doors were not gifted with eyes and ears, so the anchor of the show thought that it would not be wise to continue the show with only about dozen of people as a audience. When majority of audience left the hall before the wrap-up of show, the artists felt dishonored by them. If I was one of them I also would have felt humiliated when suddenly huge audience disappears at a time. But I as a host official am here to typewrite my sorry message to dear artists (forest fire volunteers) of Sherubtse College, and also give explanation for why suddenly the hall was empty.  Unlike other places, any awareness show may not possibly be a hit in Drametse in night hours.  This is because most of the villages are dispersed far away from the Geog centre and they need to travel for more than an hour in the dark, and at home their children may sleep with empty stomach when they don’t reach on time to prepare dinner. Usually the farmers sleep early and wakeup when their cock makes the morning call. So, what I mean to say is that you my dear Shercol artists should not tell your junior mates in College about any show not working well in Drametse. This would otherwise be a discourage to any such informative and entertaining upcoming event in Drametse. Any forestry related awareness if scheduled in the day hours then I guarantee the coordinators with not less than 200 audience from my side and that’s a word of a man. Anyway, thanks to all the artists of Sherubtse for your show in Drametse.  

"Forgive for any grammatical errors"

Houseful audience before 8 PM

Categories: Environment