As I mentioned in my blog few hours back that we were celebrating my dad’s 10 years of service working in Norwegian cruise line today. Everybody’s dad has done something for their kids in their life and how hard they work for their kids, to make their kids a better person when they grow up and my dad is also one of those best dads in the world.
We come from Dodhara (western part of Nepal, which is near the India border), I have been there in our village once when I was 14 years old when I came Nepal for vacation and after living my life in Singapore, it was not easy for me to adjust life to the village lifestyle. I am sure if I was brought up there in the village, I would have gotten used to all those but I was not brought up there as compared to my cousins. I feel I am much luckier in that sense because of the hard work my dad had to endure.
As the age of 17 years old, my dad left Nepal to join Singapore Police Force. After undergoing intensive training, he was selected as a Gurkha to serve Singapore. Leaving his country, family, and wife (who is my mum), to serve Singapore at such a young age is not an easy task to do. But he did it (so did all his fellow mates), to make a better life for us in the future, he left his family for his children’s future.
(My dad when he was young, in Singapore)
(Enjoying with friends over dinner, with beer. You can see how they dress up with shirt and tie. No matter what occasion they had to attend, they were trained in such a way that their attire was always formal wear)
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(This picture was taken from the following link "https://www.facebook.com/gurkhas.sg/photos/a.185187028236026.48917.181449115276484/1146013542153365/?type=3&theater". While Training in HK for recruit training and camouflage, as they were required to go jungle for days even weeks while on duty)
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( Picture taking from the following link "https://www.facebook.com/gurkhas.sg/photos/a.185187028236026.48917.181449115276484/1146013252153394/?type=3&theater" Marching in the passing out parade in Hong Kong, not only that, there were various parades my dad had to participate in)
After performing his first 3 years of service in Singapore, he finally had chance to go home to meet his families in Nepal (that is the life of Gurkhas in Singapore. They could go home after 3 years for a period of 6 months to be with their families. And from their 2nd service onward, they are allowed to take their wife and kids to stay with them as the government allow them this facilities).
(Picture of my mum and dad during one of the festive season known as Dashain)
For almost 26 years, my dad served Singapore as a policeman so that we (his 5 children) could have a better life.
At the age of 43, my dad resigned from Singapore and came back to Nepal. But he did not lead his retired life by sitting down and shaking legs. He knew that he wanted to give all his children better education, send them aboard to study, therefore he searched for a 2nd job again out of Nepal. But this time his 2nd job, did not allow him to take his family with him as he found a job in the shipping industry.
Though my dad retired from his 1st job as a policeman, he is still working in Norwegian Cruise Line for the past 10 years. Today marks his 10 year service for the company so we decided to celebrate the occasion.
I am so proud of my dad and what he has done for us until now. Most of his friends are enjoying life after retirement but he is still working for us. In couple of years, my dad hope to retire from his 2nd job and lead the rest of his life with my mum in peace.
(Moments when my dad and I used to meet whenever we used to be in the same port as we are working for 2 different company even though our profession is the same)
