We have received the recent grade results for the children’s school exams. You’ll be most delighted! Over half the children got A+, the rest got B+. Nobody failed. Now they will have their annual holidays which last for over a month. Some of them like the holiday and some of them really miss school!

The two week Dashain festival, which begins 28 September, is a celebration much like the Western Christmas. It is a national holiday where people return to their villages to be with family, have delicious meals and celebrate with colourful processions. Tihar, a celebration of lights, begins after Dashain finishes during the month of October. Cultural acts of dances and songs are integral parts of these celebrations.

Our children, where possible, will return to their villages or spend time with their parents in jail. Some do not have a village connection so they will stay at the Firefly home. The hiccup we are facing is the chaos and damage caused by the earthquake which hit Nepal on 18 September. Mudslides have closed roads and poor weather has hampered attempts to restore order. If you would like to read more about the Nepal/India/Tibet earthquake, visit www.earthquake-nepal.com/news.html

If anyone did not see the lovely photos of Womens day, scroll down to last month’s update. I will post photos of the colourful Dashain celebrations next month!