Nima Sherpa lives in Nepal where the tallest mountain on earth, the mountain we call Everest, towers above the clouds. Every day, on the long walk to school, Nima passes porter and their caravans, travelers trekking, and monks on their way to their monastery. After school, she meets her friend Tenzing, an old Tibetan trader, at the marketplace. Whenever Nima sees someone, she brings her hands together, bows her head slightly, and says “Namaste" - the light in me meets the light in you. "When you say “Namaste” try to see the special spark of light that shines within every person's heart," her mother tells her. In Namaste! Nima learns that she brightens the day for friends and strangers alike every time she says "Namaste.”
Woven into this simple, gentle story about recognizing and honoring the sacred in each other are delightful details of daily life in Nepal. Namaste! is lusciously illustrated by artist Amy Cordova, with a glossary of terms at the end of the book and an informative afterword by Ang Rita Sherpa of The Mountain institute.
