Nepal in the nail salon

So I discovered tonight that the woman who does my nails here on the Upper East side is from Nepal.

It was a shock to me only because I just finished reading a novel that was based loosely on her country's travails.

The book, "The Inheritance of Loss," sucked me in as books about in the region often do. I loved "The God of Small Things" and I've enjoyed the few Salman Rushdie books I've read.

The region is still so raw. Reading about even its current history is amazing.

The Nepalese still haven't been able to become a unified nation in so many ways and have remained much like an early United States.

I'm no expert by any means. But this is from the CIA's site: A Maoist insurgency, launched in 1996, gained traction and threatened to bring down the regime, especially after a negotiated cease-fire between the Maoists and government forces broke down in August 2003. In 2001, the crown prince massacred ten members of the royal family, including the king and queen, and then took his own life.

I mean that's like some Shakespearean shit, right?

And things haven't improved much today. The king dissolved the government in 2005 and retained absolute power until April 2006. The nice king allowed parliament to reconvene in 2006, but the country still hasn't had elections.

I can't imagine what her life has been like. She hasn't been here very long and appears to be about my age.

I wanted to ask her about the scars on her arms, but I didn't. They look like burn marks. But I hate reporters who always have to pry. I mean, I'm not writing a story. I asked her about her country and she didn't offer personal information. So why should I push? Maybe I will ask someday.

But something struck me in our conversation. I talked about the British, who, while they didn't colonize her country, held considerable sway. She replied that the U.S. was good friends with the British.

This is where I had an epiphany of sorts. It rarely occurs to me what people who have moved here from other lands think of us. (That's a little of the "Ugly American" I've always tried not to be.)

I told her that the Brits once colonized America. I told her that they once ruled us.

"No," she said. "You're good friends _ America and the British."

"We kicked them out," I said.

"No," she said.

"We had a revolution to get them out," I said. "We declared our freedom in 1776."

"I never knew that," she said. "I can't believe it."

My knowledge about her country is spotty at best. So, why should I assume she knows everything about this country?

I left there tonight feeling like there's so much that binds us. We just don't know it.

I suppose I'll always be an optimist at heart.

Peace.