“Father never wore slippers but never let us walk bare feet. The bottom of his feet had cracks all over and he had a few nails missing. I remember he would go to Dharan and come back with salt after 9 days. And while he was gone, my heart of a child would wonder for the day when he would return. As I grew older, I started to understand the financial struggles of the family. And I understood it was all the walking in this difficult land that broke his feet. Three years ago, he died of cancer. And every time I talk about my father, I remember his bruised nailless feet. And it makes me wonder, maybe he could afford a pair of shoes but he chose not to wear it. Maybe his feet were meant to touch the earth.” (Indra Tamang, Fungling, Taplejung)