Uploaded May 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
"Give us the money or turn back from where you came" the robbers said to our guide. I was only 8 but I was well aware that this would mean we'd have to walk all the way back across the icy mountain passes of the Himalayas. Would we make that alive without any food or water? And if we did, what would the Chinese do to us?
It was only a few weeks earlier when my parents picked me up from school in Lhasa, Tibet "How would you like to go on a field trip and make some new friends, Tenzin?" my father asked me. With excitement I jumped up and said yes. This would be so exciting! "Great to see you're excited - you'll have a great time!" my mom said. I remember looking at her a bit surprised as I saw the tears in her eyes - but she quickly shrugged off any of my concerns. We walked back home hand in hand - this was going to be a great adventure!
Little did I know then that my parents were sacrificing everything they owned and potentially their own lives in order for me to escape from persecution and oppression. My mom was told I was doing well in school and that I was "selected" to be sent to Beijing to continue my studies there. But my family soon realized that these "selected students" were being sent there to be trained as mouth-piece for Chinese propaganda. Yet going against the Chinese was dangerous - they heavily cracked down on those who opposed them; they raided homes and hurt families, burned down monasteries and assaulted monks.
Telling me over and over how much they loved me, they walked me over to meet the guide and the other 5 kids. As I was excited to meet the others kids and go on the trip my parents gave me one last hug before letting me go. "Don't worry mom, I'll be back in a couple of days. I'll miss you but I'll have fun with my friends!" "We'll miss you too, son!" my father said as he he hugged my mom who couldn't hold her tears. I hopped on the truck with the guide and my friends - off we went to a few days of adventure...or so I thought...
Like Tenzin, about 80,000 Tibetans fled from Tibet between 1959-1960, when the Chinese government cracked down on Tibetans trying to claim their independence. Tibet has had a tumultuous history, with some periods functioning as an independent entity and others ruled by powerful Chinese and Mongolian dynasties. Tibet is under control of the Chinese but with the use of force to impose their rule, tens of thousands of Tibetans have been ended and most monasteries have been wiped out. Until today tensions remain as its people's allegiance is with the 14th Dalai Lama and his government in exile and don't want to submit to the oppressive Chinese rule. Tibetans continue to flee with estimates of over 150,000 living in exile today. Though most are well-settled in Nepal, India and Bhutan, many still wish to return to their homeland sometime in the future. Hopefully reuniting with family if they are still alive.
#Truestory #MinuteVideos
"Give us the money or turn back from where you came" the robbers said to our guide. I was only 8 but I was well aware that this would mean we'd have to walk all the way back across the icy mountain passes of the Himalayas. Would we make that alive without any food or water? And if we did, what would the Chinese do to us?
It was only a few weeks earlier when my parents picked me up from school in Lhasa, Tibet "How would you like to go on a field trip and make some new friends, Tenzin?" my father asked me. With excitement I jumped up and said yes. This would be so exciting! "Great to see you're excited - you'll have a great time!" my mom said. I remember looking at her a bit surprised as I saw the tears in her eyes - but she quickly shrugged off any of my concerns. We walked back home hand in hand - this was going to be a great adventure!
Little did I know then that my parents were sacrificing everything they owned and potentially their own lives in order for me to escape from persecution and oppression. My mom was told I was doing well in school and that I was "selected" to be sent to Beijing to continue my studies there. But my family soon realized that these "selected students" were being sent there to be trained as mouth-piece for Chinese propaganda. Yet going against the Chinese was dangerous - they heavily cracked down on those who opposed them; they raided homes and hurt families, burned down monasteries and assaulted monks.
Telling me over and over how much they loved me, they walked me over to meet the guide and the other 5 kids. As I was excited to meet the others kids and go on the trip my parents gave me one last hug before letting me go. "Don't worry mom, I'll be back in a couple of days. I'll miss you but I'll have fun with my friends!" "We'll miss you too, son!" my father said as he he hugged my mom who couldn't hold her tears. I hopped on the truck with the guide and my friends - off we went to a few days of adventure...or so I thought...
Like Tenzin, about 80,000 Tibetans fled from Tibet between 1959-1960, when the Chinese government cracked down on Tibetans trying to claim their independence. Tibet has had a tumultuous history, with some periods functioning as an independent entity and others ruled by powerful Chinese and Mongolian dynasties. Tibet is under control of the Chinese but with the use of force to impose their rule, tens of thousands of Tibetans have been ended and most monasteries have been wiped out. Until today tensions remain as its people's allegiance is with the 14th Dalai Lama and his government in exile and don't want to submit to the oppressive Chinese rule. Tibetans continue to flee with estimates of over 150,000 living in exile today. Though most are well-settled in Nepal, India and Bhutan, many still wish to return to their homeland sometime in the future. Hopefully reuniting with family if they are still alive.
#Truestory #MinuteVideos
