Laxmi Theeng has been living alone with her two daughters ever since her husband died in an accident three years ago. But rather than be caught up in her loneliness or grief, she prefers to live a free and joyful life. She runs a small shop to cover living expenses and pay for her children’s education. Laxmi’s family arranged her marriage to Jeeban Tamang when she was in her teens. She says, “I could not complete my studies because I got married at an early age, and I had a health problem.” Barely a year after her marriage, Laxmi had to be operated on because of a liver infection. She lives in a rented home in Kapan, in the north of Kathmandu, with her daughters Jina and Jiya. Her daughters study at Bigyan Higher Secondary School, which is close by. Jina is in Class Five and Jiya is in UKG this year. Sometimes, Laxmi says, her children irritate her and she becomes angry with them. But she lives for them, and hopes to go abroad to earn more money.