The Fifth of February is Now More Than Just a Date

On 6^th February, when the grand announcement of the birth of Gyalsey warmed the cold mountain air my mother called me to tell me that I had forgotten to wish my little sister on her birthday yet again. It wasn’t the first time I forgot her birthday and it always broke my heart. But this time I promised her that I shall never forget her birthday anymore because Fifth of February is never going to be just another date on the calendar. The Fifth of February is now an auspicious occasion for all times to come. I felt so proud that my sister now shared birthday with His Royal Highness, the Gyalsey.

The Fifth of February will go down in history as the day the luckiest Crown Prince in the history of the country was born. Since the beginning of monarchy in the Bhutan this day has never happened where the crown prince was born in the presence of his King Grandfather. His Majesty and Her Majesty have therefore given the best 60^th birthday gift to the Great Fourth and to their people. This makes us the luckiest people in the history to be living in this glorious time and witnessing what’s nothing short of perfection.

We have already witnessed two of the greatest events in the history; the crowning glory of His Majesty the King and the Royal Wedding, both of which were extraordinarily significant because of the presence of His Majesty the Fourth King. The happiness that the nation experienced in these moments was crafted, piece by piece, over a long period of time by the king who knew the source of perfect happiness.

Three Generations of Kings in the First official Photograph of HRH Gyalsey

Today, on the auspicious day of losar we were given the gift of the first glimpse of our Gyalsey through the official photograph. The picture was so absorbing that I kept looking at it for a long time. It showed our glorious past and the beautiful present looking at the promising future. The right hand of the Great Fourth wrapped affectionately around Gyaltsen's shoulder and the left across His Majesty's lap holding the newborn- Oh it's made in heaven! It's a picture that can make your forget everything and be happy. And in this overwhelming moment the only words that keep coming to my mind is Thank You.

Father King's Gift of Happiness to Bhutan

On December 14th, 2006, when His Majesty the Fourth King handed over his duties as king to his son, His Majesty Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, the ministers and senior government officials who were attending the ceremony shed their tears silently, common people across the country were shocked and felt helpless, unable to comprehend. I thought it was a bad dream. For us, the Fourth King was the personification of God himself and I had a wish to live and die under his rule. It was the hardest to accept that the King we loved all our lives was resigning at the age of 51, changing the course of history and tradition.

But what we didn't realize was his vision of happiness for his people. And today, after two major events in the history of the nation- the coronation of the His Majesty the King of Bhutan and the Royal Wedding, when I look back it brings tears to my eyes as I understand how great a gift our Fourth King has given us on that fateful day in 2006.

First Time in the History of Humanity

Never in the history of our country, or any other country, a father king crowned his son. It was always after the passing away of the father that son gets crowned. For the first time in the history the raven crown was worn on the head of king who was perfectly happy during the crowning ceremony. And that glory reflected in lives of every Bhutanese. That was the Gift from the Fouth King that we didn't understand back in 2006.

The Royal Kiss in Changlingmethang

Never in the history of our country a queen was crowned in the presence of her father in-law. Ashi Jetsun Pema Wangchuk was the first queen who received Dhar Negnar from the dotting father King. The Royal Wedding became so special just because there was the father king to bless them and this is the blessing to the people of Bhutan that we didn't understand back in 2006.

And every morning we wake up to the love and grace of the charming young King without having to miss our former King just because we know he is still there watching us, and that is the daily happiness we enjoy and it's the gift from the Fourth King that we didn't understand back in 2006.

Now, there will be another moment in our own time when our Crown Prince will be born, who will be the first crown prince to receive the blessings and wisdom of his Grandfather. That shall bring immense joy to us all.

Thank you Your Majesty, now we know why you did what you did in 2006. You are truly the God of happiness.

Royal Wedding Announcement

Today, everybody in Bhutan is talking about the Royal Wedding announcement done this morning by His Majesty himself. Come October and we are going to see Ashi Jetsun Pema, whom his majesty described as a humble and caring girl, stand along our king and wave at us.


His majesty shared this great news with us last week during his visit to our school, and this morning's announcement made it all seem so real. While the news brought tsunami of happiness across the nation, I am sure millions of girl's hearts across the world must have been broken this morning!


The urge to see our future queen began right away, and I Googled for her pictures, but I am returned with pictures of His holiness the Dalai Lama's sister. I considered it a very good omen!


And finally, His Majesty King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck's page on Facebook release the spellbinding picture of the divine pair. They are made for each other, without a doubt!

K5 with Ashi Jetsun Pema!