Assambirds

Bicycles, Books, and the 1990s: My Days at the Golaghat District Library The old Golaghat District Library which was located near Kushal Konwar Balya Bhawan School at Mission Club Road during the 1990s. There is a distinct aroma to the 1990s that the internet generation will never quite understand. It was a blend of rain–soaked earth, the grease of a bicycle chain, and the musty, comforting scent of old pages in a library. Whenever I think about those days, I am instantly transported back to 1990s. I was in Class 10, standing on the precipice of growing up, and the Golaghat District Library was my sanctuary. After passing my matriculation, I joined Golaghat Commerce College. That transition came with a n...

The Common Map in Jibjibe The Common Map Butterfly ( Cyrestis thyodamas ) earns its name from the intricate, network–like pattern of thin black lines across its white wings, which bears a striking resemblance to a cartographic map. The delicate wings of the Common Map Butterfly reveal a profound truth: the most meaningful cartography is not found in static atlases, but in the vibrant biodiversity of our own backyard in Jibjibe. I have always loved the word "map." My fascination with cartography began in the 1990s, when I first started reading National Geographic . Every month, the magazine arrived with new, intricate maps, and I was captivated by every one of them. It is fascinating to see how humans inhabit ev...

An Encounter With The Kafkaesque Guest A Chinese Mantis ( Tenodera sinensis ), encountered on a summer morning, inspired by the absurd anxieties of Gregor Samsa and the ancient, prehistoric world it outlived. Waking up to find a prehistoric visitor on my bedroom wall felt like a surreal intrusion from the world of Franz Kafka. On a quiet Tuesday summer morning, I woke up to an unexpected guest. As I opened my eyes, I found myself staring at a praying mantis perched on the wall, just two feet from my face. (It was a Chinese Mantis Tenodera sinensis .) For a moment, I lay there paralyzed, utterly fascinated by its bizarre anatomy—those impossibly long legs, a needle–thin body, two sweeping antennae, and an ov...

The Boudha An illustration of Boudhanath Stupa: devotees, pilgrims, and locals circumambulating the monumental dome of the Great Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal. Boudha—affectionately known as Boudhanath Stupa, Jarung Kashor , or Khasti Mahachaitya —stands as one of the largest Buddhist stupas in the world. As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, this iconic landmark is both a vital spiritual sanctuary and a premier magnet for travelers exploring Kathmandu. Ever since I moved to Nepal in 2025 to teach English at North Pole Boarding High School in Jibjibe, Rasuwa—thanks to a wonderful opportunity from Mr. Krishna Bahadur Tamang—I had been longing to visit the Kathmandu Valley. So, after four busy months in Ji...