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How gentle I am, just like a cloud, 

You can’t touch me, even though you think you can. 

Soft as I drift with the cool wind, 

Capable of changing with every wind. 

Forgetting my origins, allowing the wind to lead me,

Never hesitating, I lose myself 

I just go along with the flow. 

Oh cloud, you’re never too solid to hold 

Why so gentle, so hard to grasp, 

Never too harsh to fight for yourself. 

All the patience she carries sometimes grows heavy, 

With too much pressure, she bursts. 

She had been keeping it inside for so long, 

Not following the wind, 

Not allowing herself to be diverted, 

Suddenly she stays still, 

Even as the winds blow, 

Even the thunder can’t move her. 

Then that same soft white fairy becomes heavy, 

With deep dark beauty, 

Crying and pouring herself out. 

The world feels the sorrowful beauty she holds, 

While some adored her on her bright, blissful days. 

She embraced both forms of beauty within herself.  

Some noticed the sharp edges in her, 

Others appreciated  how she let her emotions go  

Some criticized her for being too gentle,  

While some just loved her softness and kindness. 

Supriya Paudel  

BBM VI Semester  

United College

Exploring the woods

I was sitting in my room, bored out of my mind, when the doorbell rang. To my surprise, it was my best friend, Tom. You see, Tom is the laziest person I have ever met—he even asks others to tie his shoelaces.

“Hi Tom, how are you?” I asked. Without answering, he walked straight into my room and sat on my bed.

Was he still mad at me for spilling soup in his bag yesterday? Nervously, I asked, “What happened?”

“Nothing,” he replied. “I just came to play.” Relieved, I joined him. We ate chips and played some games, but soon got bored again. That’s when Tom asked, “Have you heard the new rumor about the forest nearby?”

I shook my head nervously. He gave me a strange look. “Okay, no worries, I’ll tell you. At the end of the forest, there’s a haunted house ruled by twelve spirits. Even during the daytime, a candle flickers in the window.”

I didn’t believe him. “Let’s go check it out and see if it’s real,” I challenged.

“I don’t want to!” Tom whined. “I’m scared!” But after some convincing, he finally agreed.

Wrong house

We set off into the forest. After a while, we reached a fork in the road. “Let’s split up,” I suggested. “We’ll call each other when we find the house.”

Reluctantly, Tom agreed. I walked and walked, staring at the ground, when suddenly—bam! I bumped into someone.

“AAAHHH!” I screamed. “AAAHHH!” the other person screamed back.

It was Tom! Somehow, our paths crossed again. Laughing nervously, we continued together until, in the distance, we spotted a massive house.

“That’s the haunted house!” Tom whispered.

We raced toward it, but once inside the gate, we realized it didn’t look haunted at all. Flowers bloomed in the garden, and a beautiful chandelier sparkled inside.

We explored the mansion, passing through endless halls and climbing a grand staircase, until we opened a small door. Inside, a family of six sat around a table.

“Come in, boys,” the mother said kindly. Nervously, we sat down. She asked, “What are you searching for?”

“A haunted house,” we replied. She laughed. “There’s no haunted house in this forest.” “I knew it!” I shouted.

But Tom leaned over and whispered, “She’s lying. I just know it.”

That night, the family gave us dinner and showed us to a room. Exhausted, we fell asleep quickly.

Something strange

The next morning, the house was empty. No family, no voices—just silence. We ran through the halls calling out, but no one was there. It was eerie. “Let’s leave now,” I told Tom. We grabbed some food from the kitchen for the journey and hurried outside. Suddenly, someone called our names. “AAAGGGHHHHH!” we screamed.

It was our parents. Furious and relieved, they told us they had searched all night and even put up missing posters all over town. Without another word, they dragged us home. Our adventure had ended.

The missing posters

The very next day, we went to school. On the projector screen during assembly, our missing poster was displayed. Even the principal looked emotional. Then a fifth grader shouted, “OH MY GOD! THE MISSING GUYS ARE HERE!”

Everyone turned to stare at us like we were aliens from another planet. The principal called us on stage. “Where were you two?” he asked politely. We said nothing. “WHERE WERE YOU?” he repeated, louder this time.

Still, we stayed silent. Furious, he scolded us in front of the whole school. For the rest of the day, classmates, teachers, even strangers kept asking the same question. An old lady stopped us on the street, the shopkeeper asked too—it was endless. Tired and annoyed, we just ignored them.

The news

That evening, I finally felt some relief sitting at home. After finishing homework and dinner, I sat with my family to watch the news. Suddenly, the reporter showed the photos of two boys who had been lost and found.

I leaned closer. It was me and Tom! “AAARRRRGGGHHHH!” I screamed.

My parents gave me a puzzled look. I told them everything—that people had been asking the same questions all day, and now even the news was covering it. It was so, so annoying.

This is the first in a two-part series. The second part will be published next week

Shreyashi Sigdel

Grade VII

Euro School, Chhauni

The process of thought seems quite complex but it is due to two systems of brains at work. The first system represents conscious thoughts like adding or multiplying some numbers. It is the system that you think you are. It takes effort to use this part of the brain because this system is usually lazy but is capable of catching and correcting mistakes. This is not the only major major system in play but there is also system two. This system two is mainly responsible for the unconscious thought and is really quick as it needs to be because of the copious amount of information coming through our senses. 

This system filters out the unnecessary information and only picks out the relevant without the conscious system in play. This system also fills in the necessary bits of our conscious thought from system one. 

Each of this system is related to our main memory structures, the system two quick interpretation is possible due to long term memory and familiarity including the library of information built in through our life. In contrast, system one exists entirely in working memory making it possible to hold only 4 to five noble things in mind at once. In demonstration we can remember only a few digits of a random number at once but if the number is familiar it is quite easy to remember. 

This process is learning and the process of learning is simply passing off information of short term memory from system one to system two to make it long term. In order for this to happen, one needs to actively engage with the information and with effort. In demonstration, tying up your shoelace for the first time was quite difficult and it probably took all the working memory at that time but now we don’t even need to think about it as it has already been passed off to system two due to continuous effortful engagement with the information. 

This is also known as muscle memory although it is not in the muscles it is still in the brain controlled by system two. Sometimes what we think of superhuman abilities comes down to incredible automation skills of system two developed through the relentless practice of system one.

Shreeshant Rijal

Class XII

KMC, Bagbazzar

Human settlements on earth have been divided into various categories—cities, towns, suburbs and far-off villages. As a human settlement continues to grow in size, open spaces start to become dearer. Does it mean that living in a city should necessarily be equal to living without sufficient open public spaces? Do we children and the generation ahead have to accept silently that we are destined to live with all the disadvantages that a bad urbanization brings along? Who is responsible for the ugliness and the mess in a badly planned city? 

We children are not responsible for that, are we? Yet, we are the ones who are affected the most. That is why it is important that we must seize every opportunity to raise awareness. Discussions about the value of open public places, such as city squares, parks, playgrounds, and stadiums, are essential. These days, children in cities are criticized for staying indoors. But hardly anybody bothers to ask if there are any dedicated playgrounds for children in their neighborhoods.

I used to wonder why open spaces were important—until my mother told me about the 2015 earthquake. That was the time when people realized the critical need for open spaces in cities. Kathmandu Valley cannot undo the mistakes it made in the process of urbanization, but cities like Tulsipur have a chane to learn from them.

Open spaces in cities offer us many benefits. They help maintain groundwater level through the seepage of rainwater. They provide children with a safe space to play. Parks and their greenery can promote internal tourism and help clean the air. Open spaces can also serve as venues for various cultural shows and social gatherings. 

In conclusion, while planning and developing a city, the government should not ignore any aspect of urbanization that contributes to livability. 

Saanvi Dhital

Grade VI 

Sanskar Pathshala, Dang