In October 1998, I had the opportunity to see and meet David Breashears for the first time at my uncle Wongchhu Sherpa's house in Kathmandu. I was 11 years old at that time. When I met him for the first time, he had climbed most of the mountains in Nepal and had also produced films related to the mountains. David and my uncle Wongchhu were very friendly with each other. I felt the relationship between them was like that of brothers.
David's work in all kinds of tourism and mountain climbing in Nepal was done through my uncle Wongchhu Sherpa's company. My uncle brought me to Kathmandu to teach me at a young age and I also got the opportunity to work in the trekking company there. In my uncle's company, along with my studies, I also got a chance to handle the responsibilities of a storekeeper. Along with the responsibility of the storekeeper, I also had the opportunity to get to know the foreign tourists who received services through the company.
While carrying out the responsibility, my important role was to provide the necessary materials during the trekking or mountain climbing in different seasons. While working in this way, every year David came to the company for tourism and mountain climbing, so I had direct contact with him in most of the matters. He started helping me with the inspection of the goods in the store, demand for necessary materials, management etc. It helped me to be more precise in my work.
While working in the store, I was also trekking with other friends and foreign nationals. Accordingly, from the year 2000 I also started trekking as a porter. From 2000 to 2003, I worked as a porter on other treks operated by David and my uncle's company. In 2003, Uncle Wongchhu Sherpa provided an important opportunity to work with the Everest climbing team at the base camp during the spring season to cook food for the climbers. It is no different from the beginning of a successful journey in my field of tourism. With the income I got from work, I participated in mountain climbing training provided by the Nepal Mountaineering Association. Through the association, I successfully completed the basic and advanced mountaineering training and stood ready to take the first step on the mountain climbing path.
In this way, after receiving the mountain climbing training, in 2004, under the leadership of David Breashears, I got the opportunity to climb Sagarmatha for the first time as a Climbing Sherpa in the Working Title Everest Expedition. I was preparing for my first ever summit of Mount Everest and a momentous opportunity on my journey with David. I had the opportunity to spend more than 2 months with David while climbing Everest. During the stay, I got to know David and he got to know me closely. After that trip, I became David's first choice during his visit to Nepal. While staying with David, who comes to Nepal 3 to 4 times a year, I had the opportunity to learn mountain climbing, photography, film making, etc. from him. Gathering the bittersweet experience, we got a chance to understand each other, and he helped me as much as possible from his side. During my journey with him, I got the opportunity to work together on 44 different projects such as small mountain climbing and other tourism. I have worked with David for 1,251 days on this journey.
During the journey from 2004 to 2015, the great earthquake that hit Nepal has also written our separate story. The great earthquake that hit Nepal in 2015 left an unforgettable wound. In addition to the loss of lives of thousands of people, the loss of physical structures greatly affected Nepal. On the day of the earthquake, David and I were climbing Mount Everest. We moved forward from the base camp and reached Camp 1. Suddenly, even the Everest region could not remain untouched by the tremors of the earthquake. The avalanche that caused the death of 18 people is still fresh in our minds. Similarly, on that day when more than 80 people involved in mountain climbing were injured, the two of us could not do anything else except to see the damage of crores. Being hit by natural calamities, we were in no position to do anything but watch helplessly and save our lives. After that incident, if David was also traumatized from the inside, he began to worry about what can be done about it.
One day, in a conversation with David, he told me that he wanted to stop climbing and study the effects of climate change on the mountains and work related to it. According to his wish, we started to focus on the work of not climbing high snow peaks, studying the effects of climate change on the mountains and mountain regions, and finding ways to avoid and save them. Although mountain climbing is an adventure, we all know that there are many challenges and difficulties in it. Hundreds of people have lost their lives while climbing the mountain and some have been crippled. However, it was clear to both of us that the attraction of being in this area would be very different. However, we decided to spend more time studying than climbing. David himself was such a personality that he was clear about his goals and goals. Maybe foreign nationals usually implement themselves and their plans according to the plan and time and bring them to success. He also cared a lot about such things. David never liked deception or fraud. If someone tried to deceive, David would stand against him and keep such people away from him.
Since I was familiar with David's behavior from a young age, I was able to follow his work habits, his way of planning and working within his time schedule. Maybe because I know him closely, I used to prepare what he wanted to say in advance and help him finish it. That's why he used to treat me like his son and give me inspiration by teaching me work. We have worked together like this for about 18 years. In this 18-year journey, I have had the opportunity to learn a lot from them, and I have also had the opportunity to get to know the world. Sometimes we laughed together, sometimes we cried together and sometimes we rejoiced together and sometimes we were scared together. By loving me like his own son, I have given him the position of a religious father. Because of that I got a chance to act in Everest Movie and because of this movie I got to step on the red carpet of Hollywood movies. I am probably the first Nepali to walk on the Hollywood red carpet held in Los Angeles, America. I am grateful to my religious guru David for giving me such an opportunity.
David Breashears contribution to Nepal's mountaineering field is invaluable and appreciable and will continue to be. The movie Everest, produced by him, has helped to establish Nepal's separate image on the world map. Similarly, it is not possible to talk about the revenue he paid to the government of Nepal during the production of the film and the employment he gave to Nepalese people during the production of the film and tourist trips. Even though he was giving employment to hundreds of Nepalis, he never thought that he was big.
The movies produced by David include Everest Imax 1998, Strom over Everest, Everest the death zone, To ''The Roof of Africa'', The ALPS, Seven Years in Tibet, Hollywood Movie- Everest 2015 and others. David released the movie Everest Hollywood, which was shot on Mount Everest, all over the world. The movie managed to earn 128 million dollars worldwide. World famous movie Everest 2015 is hardly talked about. Because the movie Everest, which was made with a lot of investment and hard work during the production of Hollywood movies, succeeded in winning the hearts of all the viewers, and that process is still going on. I got the responsibility of playing the role of the then guide Ang Dorji Sherpa in the film, which was the assistant producer David, on the initiative of my godfather David and my uncle Wongchhu Sherpa. In Nepal alone, more than 6 million dollars were invested to produce this movie, and this movie was shot in Italy, London along with Nepal. This movie was shot in Khumbu area of Khumbu Pasang Lhamu rural municipality with the help of 99 foreign citizens, 150 Nepali helpers, 50 Yaks, 50 helicopters and 100 Porters among others. Filmed in the presence of six government liaison officers, this movie perfectly managed to earn 202.4million US dollars.
In this way, sometimes by making movies and sometimes by climbing mountains, David, who has been providing financial benefits to Nepal and Nepalese through various means, will not be lost on this earth, but his social work will always remain immortal. When he came to Nepal, he did a lot of social work in my village called Tapting in Solu Khumbu district for the sake of acquaintance, cooperation and intimacy. He, in collaboration with my uncle Wongchhu Sherpa, has helped in health, education, hydropower, drinking water and other works. But I can't believe the game of fate either because both of my god fathers are no longer on this earth. Both these great personalities have left this world without being able to meet the expectations of me and many others like me. However, the memory of the social work done by both of them will remain alive forever. Glacier Works, which was established by David in 2007 to study the activities affected by climate change in the mountains, has done a lot of work in the field of research. In 2012, the organization exhibited a picture taken 100 years ago about the impact of climate change on the mountain region at Everest Base Camp and a picture of the changes in the mountains, snow and environment seen from that place when the picture was taken after 100 years. The exhibition was the highest picture exhibition in the world.
In this way David's and my journey progressed closer together using technology. According to the timeline, even after my stay in America started, I used to talk to David sometimes on the phone, sometimes on Facebook. In the meantime, we have discussed the work that can be done in Nepal. However, the future will tell whether these plans can be realized or not. After the death of my uncle and social worker Wongchhu Sherpa in 2015, there was a big thunderbolt in both of our lives. All the woven plans we made used to be completed through my uncle Wongchhu Sherpa, but since Uncle was not there, all the woven plans were like worthless. After the death of my uncle, David also left to go to Nepal. Although my God father is David, I have accepted my uncle as my god father. Because after my father left me when I was 10 years old, my uncle took care of me and brought me to this state. David, who was known as such a great person, was not with me and David, and David was also very sad. Although he wanted to go to Nepal, he was afraid of how he would reach that area and how he would be happy now that his best friend was in this world. When he was living with me in America, he used to say that now there is no one in Nepal that I can call my own, you live in America and Wongchhu my friend is no longer on this earth for me, that's why even though I want to go to Nepal, I can't go.
The development of education, health, drinking water, electricity, etc. has become possible in Tapting, the village where my late uncle and I were born. With the co-operation of David and my uncle Wongchhu Sherpa, currently Wongchhu Vishwa Darshan Basic School, Wongchhu Hydropower Project and Wongchhu Sherpa Memorial Hospital have been established and are currently providing services to the citizens of the district and neighboring districts. At present, the hospital is serving the clients of Solu Khumbu and the neighboring districts of Okhaldhunga and Ramechhap. Always having a clean spirit, I wanted to do something to help the community and the poor. I have been able to learn a lot of things while staying with them, as both have similar temperaments. Uncle Wongchhu Sherpa has also done many remarkable works related to mountaineering and tourism. In the leading role of Wongchhu Sherpa, through the government of Nepal who has successfully climbed Mt. Everest and Passed S.E.E (High School) it has been arranged that he will be allowed to participate in various mountain climbing teams as a government high liaison officer during the expedition.
Currently, I am also struggling in the journey to ease the suffering of Nepalese people in California, USA. My stay in the US has been extended either legally or due to personal need. After the completion of this process, David and I were advised to go to Nepal and make the rest of the plans successful, but I cannot say what will happen to these plans. When I last talked to David a few months ago, he had established a scholarship fund for the family members of those who lost their lives in the avalanche after the earthquake as part of the Glacier Works project, or let's say their children who are currently studying, including higher education teaching, residential management, etc. The dream of doing something to convey the message that the future is safe for the climbers and their future in this area has stopped now. David, who has been involved in mountain climbing for decades and understands the hearts of Nepalese adventurers participating in Nepal and Nepali climbing teams, expressed his desire to raise the educational level of their children.
However, this is not a game of worldly love. Last March 15, 2024, came with unbearable pain for me. On that day, I received the news of the death of my godfather David through Facebook, which brought another turning point in my life and my journey to a sudden end forever. Just as the passing away of my God Father Wongchhu Sherpa made me feel lonely from within, so the passing away of my god father David will surely stop my karmic journey to some extent. The way I am struggling now in America, that struggle will be useful for Nepal one day, but if my road-shows were together in this journey, I would have been able to do more than I wanted to, but this hope will remain in my heart forever.
In recognition of David's contribution to Nepal, he was honored by King Birendra by the "Suprabal Gorkha Dakshin Bahu'', and he has also been honored by the Mount Everest Climbers Association and the Nepal Mountaineers Association. Likewise, he has been honored and thanked by many other organizations and civic forums.
As they are all only in our memory, I will try my best to make their dreams come true in the coming days by receiving blessings through their souls. I want this blessing from all of you so that my ancestors can work hand in hand with the climbers and helpers who workday and night climbing the mountains. Finally, working round the clock for social welfare, I would like to pay my deepest respects and gratitude to all my dear ones who envisioned a happy and happy life and planned for it.
Sherpa now lives in California, USA and reached at phulasherpa@gmail.com
