Norbu Lama was a local trader of Marpha, Mustang, and to make a living, he would sell locally produced goods in nearby villages. One day, when he was on his way to his village from Myagdi, he was attacked by some robbers. The robbers demanded money of Norbu, but he refused. The robbers attacked Norbu mortally, leaving him bleeding to death on the ground. The robbers took all his money and clothes he had bought for his family.

Norbu had been there for a long time until some passersby spotted him lying unconscious. The locals helped admit him to a hospital in Myagdi, where he lay unconscious but stable. The doctors wanted to inform his family members, but nothing was found from Norbu that could reveal his identity. Meanwhile, some people arrived from the hillside. They had come to Myagdi to sell locally grown herbs.

Doctors asked them if they could recognise the man and they did. All of them recognised Norbu at first sight, because he was also from their village. They managed to inform his wife and later he was taken to Pokhara for better treatment. After spending several days in the hospital, Norbu was better but had difficulty walking. A major vein of his right leg was badly damaged. This made Norbu unable to walk for the rest of his life, but his family was happy he was alive.

Norbu’s financial condition plummeted because he was unable to sell local products in nearby villages, so he started livestock business. He would raise yaks and sell them locally but the business was not a big success. However, Norbu was happy as his son Dorje was going to school, and he was doing well in his studies. He would always get first position in the class and bag prizes for extracurricular activities.

There was about a 10-day winter vacation at school, so Dorje asked his father to allow him to go for a three-day camping trip. At first Norbu hesitated but later he allowed when he came to know that he would go with two other boys from the village.

It was a fine, sunny morning. The three friends Dorje, Chhimi and Wangdel, slung their bags and walked along the rocky, barren mountains of Marpha. Their plan was to walk the whole day and set up their camp on the banks of a river. They had enough food for three days.

They walked briskly in the morning, but as the sun began rising on top of their heads, they found walking too difficult. The boys decided to take a rest beside a hillock to avoid the blistering sunlight. At 5pm they continued walking, and at 6pm they set up a camp beside the river. It was a lovely place, surrounded by tall hills—-it was more like a small valley. Several small hills and mounds spread as far as their eyes could see. The next morning, with the first ray of the sun, they wanted to climb some of those lush green hills.

Darkness fell across the valley much quicker. After setting up the tent they got down to prepare dinner. Dorje was a good cook, he had learnt from his mother. Chhimi and Wangdel knew Dorje’s cooking skill, which is perhaps the reason why Chhimi and Wangdel wanted to take Dorje with them.

It was 9pm when the dinner was ready. Dorje asked Chhimi and Wangdel to fetch water in the jar so that they could clean the utensils. Chhimi and Wangdel took a torch and walked towards the river. They filled the jar with the icy cold water and began walking back at a gentle pace. Meanwhile, Chhimi suddenly stopped. He was trying to listen to something very hard.

“Did you hear something?” said Chhimi. But Wangdel did not hear anything. They began walking again, but Chhimi stopped once again and listened. This time even Wangdel could hear a faint sound. It was like someone moaning in agony. They began walking towards the direction from where the sound was coming. They walked another 50 metres but, once again, found nothing.

They stood there for a while and then decided to return. They had hardly walked a few steps, when they heard the sound again. This time the sound seemed to be much closer to them. They began walking towards the direction when Wangdel stumbled upon something and fell to the ground. When Chhimi shone the torch on the object, his eyes stayed open in disbelief. There was a man lying on the ground. The man was severely wounded and badly bruised. Blood on his face, head and legs had already dried.

Wasting no more time, they lifted the man up and took him to their camp where Dorje was awaiting them. Dorje was surprised to see not only water in their hands, but a wounded man in their arms—he was a foreigner. The boys examined his body and found his right leg was broken in two places. There was a deep cut in his head and his face was badly swollen.

The boys cleaned his wounds and tied his broken leg with a towel. The man was conscious but unable to communicate. Dorje made soup and fed him, they stoked the fire and provided him much-needed warmth. After dinner they decided to take the man to their home in the early morning. The man’s life depended on medical attention.

It was 4:30am when the boys carried the man on their backs. They knew it would be too difficult to walk once the sun was overhead. The wounded tourist was tall and carrying him was tough, but the boys managed it because it was a matter of life and death.

By the time the boys reached their village, they were almost half-dead themselves. Lomjeng Lama, the head of the village, informed the police and very soon, the tourist was airlifted to Kathmandu. The three boys were appreciated by the villagers for their good work.

About three months later two helicopters landed nearby the school in Marpha. All the students and teachers came out and looked in bewilderment. Over a dozen soldiers got out of the helicopters and went straight to the principal’s office and asked for Dorje, Chhimi and Wangdel. Anticipating something unexpected, the faces of the teachers had turned pale—the kids were placed before the armed soldiers. The boys felt a chill going down their spine at the thought of the unknown.

However, the next moment, in walked the tall tourist with a broad smile on his face. The three boys’ faces glistened with happiness as soon as they saw him, as he outstretched his arms and hugged them all together. The crowd was too happy to see such a dramatic change of the scene and the boys were very happy to see the tourist on his own two feet.

“I’m only alive today because of the efforts of these three boys,” the tourist said with tears in his eyes. He addressed the crowd and appreciated the efforts of those three boys. He surprised everyone when he declared he would rebuild their school with modern amenities and said he would provide free education for the three boys in England.

After spending some time with the locals, the tourist boarded the chopper and flew back to Kathmandu. Only later would people find out the man was a high-ranking British military officer. He was solo trekking when all of a sudden he fell down a 200-meter high cliff and was seriously wounded.

The whole village turned up to congratulate the boys—Dorje, Chhimi and Wangdel’s happiness knew no bound. Their good deed had not only changed their lives, but also the lives of many students. Now they would be able to get a better education and a secure future.