Participant 1 – Ganga Darjee

I conducted the first focus group session with Ganga and Mon together at Ganga’s house.
They both were eagerly awaiting to see the pictures they had captured. I sat on the ground
with my laptop on the coffee table. The ladies hovered over my shoulder as we went through
each and every picture. I facilitated the conversations by digging a little bit deeper with every
picture they had taken. The ladies really conveyed their emotions in different ways. The
conversations we had were very interactive and attentive. I gave the ladies some ideas on how
to think of ways to convey their feelings/emotions through picture taking. This first session
allowed the ladies to see how they can better portray their lifestyle for next week. I also
showed them how they can capture their diet onto a photograph. They will assist me in
recruiting 2 more participants next week.

Picture #1: ‘Aatman Parivatan’

Participants reflection: This is a picture of my bible. I look at Christianity not as my
‘dharma’, but more so as my ‘aatman parivatan’ (soul changing/guiding/preserving). Ever since I
found god, since then I have received deep happiness and found pure bliss in my life. It’s like a
light inside my heart that burns with every single breath I take.
Notes: Ganga’s face lights with a beautiful glow whenever she speaks of her “dharma”
(religion).
Picture #2: Endearing Possessions.

Participants reflection: The items stored inside of the dresser are used as a decoration and
a platform to display my possessions. It looks nice and feels nice to look at. There’s a photo of
Jesus Christ, my family, special dishwares, and others things endearing to me. Looking at
pictures of my family and friends left behind brings a lot of sadness in me, but we're here now
and it’s okay - I have the memories to keep with me.

Notes: Display of possessions is a way for her to express her pride.

Picture #4: Home is home, wherever you go.

Participants reflection: When there is no TV, furniture, pictures of family, and other
decorations - the house becomes awfully empty and loud at the same time. You can hear the
echoes of your own voice and thoughts bouncing off these walls. I experience a lot of
lonesomeness when the house is empty. Back in Bhutan, my house was beautiful - an open
floorplan with a lot of space. I decorated the walls with pictures just like here. In the refugee
camp, my house was made out of the barks of a bamboo tree. It was small and cold - survived
there for over 20 years. But even though it was made out of bamboo and was small - it was
still home. We have a lot to be grateful for. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if we
were still in Bhutan, we lived so nicely, you know? I will show you a picture of it next time.
Picture #5: Overcoming ‘Andhakar’.

Participants reflection: Watching TV with friends and family is the most ‘together’ thing we
do. Especially watching Nepali comedy shows. It brings a sense of togetherness and to be able
to share smiles and laughter is one of the most beautiful things in this world. It’s the one
activity you can find to exist in Bhutan, Nepal, and here - watching comedy shows together.
Back home, relatives, neighbors, and even strangers would all get together in a small living
room to watch shows. People would peep with binoculars or oversee from windows/doors. It
wasn’t just a family thing, it was a community-wide thing, and we all shared laughter even
during the most difficult part of our life.
Picture #7,8, & 9:

Participants reflection: This is Narita, she is actually about your age. She just delivered
twins and I had gone to pay her a visit. It’s our custom that we visit new mothers and give
them our blessings. In the picture, you can see her nursing the baby so sweetly. She is
embracing motherhood at such a young age. Seeing her gave me faint memories of when I gave
birth to my children. I have 4 boys and many other children that did not survive. It was difficult
raising my children all alone. The hardships I went through - I can barely remember them as I
am losing my memories - all I can remember is that it was really difficult. I am proud of all the
young mothers and I pray for their good health. They are lucky to be in America where there
is so much support for children
Picture #10, 11, 12 & 14:

Participants reflection: These are chili peppers! We make achar out of this. I got these
from the G-Mart. We love going there. You get to see all types of people and foods from
different parts of the world. Seeing interesting fruits and vegetables, it’s a lot of fun. It makes
me think about home in many ways. When we needed to go shop for produce, we would just
walk around the street. The fruits and veggies were grown locally in people’s garden and
nothing used to be packaged. I am not sure if I miss it too much, it’s a whole lot safer here.