Nanaksagar: A mark of my journey

It’s 6 in the morning. The sky is slightly pink, the water is completely still  like even the dam is stretching to wake up. I walk quietly along the edge of Nanakmatta Dam with my binoculars hanging around my neck. No phone calls, no crowd, just me  and the ones who arrive from the sky without saying anything.

The first time I went to the dam for birdwatching, I just wanted to see some birds. That’s it. But something changed the moment I reached there. That water wasn’t just water, it was like a mirror. In it, I saw the birds, and I also saw another version of myself, the one who was a little tired of the world, but slowly healing with nature.

Nanakmatta Dam is just a normal water reservoir but only on the map. For me, and for many birds that travel from faraway places, it’s a place to rest.

In the winter, birds like the Common Teal and Northern Shoveler stop here. They travel 1000–2000 km to reach, but when they land, there’s no big sound. Just a soft splash.

And I’m there to watch the journey in their eyes. Every bird carries a story.

Birdwatching didn’t just teach me biology, it taught me observation, patience, and respect.

Once, I found an injured Greater Coucal near the dam. I visited it every day for three days. I couldn’t do much, but it taught me that sometimes, just being there is also a kind of healing.

I also realised that biodiversity isn’t just a word from textbooks. Every species, every plant, every bit of soil is connected. When birds travel, they don’t just fly, they carry an invisible thread that keeps the ecosystem together.

One day, after birdwatching, I was picking up plastic bottles near the dam with some juniors. A girl asked me, “Didi, do birds get angry?”

I felt like she had understood something very deep without needing any big words.

That day, I realised sustainability isn’t only about “don’t throw garbage.” It’s also about feeling for the places around us. Until we build an emotional connection with nature, we’ll keep trying to clean it  but we won’t truly respect it.

Nanakmatta Dam is not my escape, it's part of my journey.

It’s the place where I understand myself better. Where silence doesn’t disturb me  it guides me. Where birds are not just flying creatures they are travelling teachers.

I’m a student  not just of books, but of nature too.

And I believe that if we all read our nearby dam, forest, or park like a textbook, we won’t just gain knowledge, we'll gain wisdom.

Jiya Kathayat