she caught in an illusion

By  NIRANJAN SHRESTHA 10:34 PM EST, February 13, 2025

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Sushila Gautam, 77, checks her smartwatch, a gift from her son living in the United States, to see if she should leave for her reading and writing lessons.

“At home, I get bored when my son and daughter-in-law go to work and grandchildren are at school. I want something to do,” she says with a smile.

When Sushila was young, girls in her village weren’t sent to school.

Sushila Gautam, 77 laughs as she becomes nervous before writing her name on the board during a writing practice in a class at the Ujyalo Community learning center in Kathmandu, Nepal, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

Elderly women attend a class at the Ujyalo Community learning center in Kathmandu, Nepal, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

Kamala K.C, 66, writes on a note book during a class at the Ujyalo Community learning center in Kathmandu, Nepal, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

For about a year now, she has been going for free lessons near her home on the outskirts of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu, at the Ujyalo Community Learning Center. The center was set up three years ago by the local council to provide basic education to women like her.

“Now, I finally have the chance,” says Sushila.

She can now read signs in English and Nepalese, is able to check her heart rate on a smartwatch, and use a smartphone. But the skill she is most proud of is her ability to sign her name on official documents. Previously, she had to put thumbprints.

A woman writes her name on a note book provided by her teacher before the start of a class at the Ujyalo Community learning center in Kathmandu, Nepal, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

Bimala Maharjan Bhandari, who runs the center, says she had difficulties at first to convince women to join.

“I had to tell them that being able to read phone messages, product labels and signing documents can benefit the whole family,” Bhandari said.

Women attend a class at the Ujyalo Community learning center in Kathmandu, Nepal, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

The half-circles are called zaï! They're a traditional farming practice in the Sahel desert, and their introduction + reintroduction can be largely credited to Yacouba Sawadogo, the man linked above! He reintroduced and innovated on the zaï on his own farm in the 1980s, and did extensive outreach (along with scientist Mathieu Ouédraogo) to encourage other farmers to adopt them as well.

He also promoted the use of cordons pierreux, which are basically just lines of rocks to reduce erosion, preserve sediments, and increase water absorption.

Interestingly, reverse image search brought up this photo, which appears to be a capture of the exact same moment, just from a different angle: 

Nepalese farmers throw mud at each other in a paddy field in Tau-Daha village on the outskirts of Kathmandu on June 29, 2010. The farmers are celebrating National Paddy Day on ‘Asar 15’ of the Nepali calendar as the annual rice planting season begins. AFP PHOTO/Prakash MATHEMA

Two more photos of continued vibe checking, also from Prakash Mathema [1] [2]

And a personal favourite from 2018 (in Lele village):