Reflections

It wasn't until I reached the college that I realised how great my parents really are. I never realised how terrific a school atmosphere I had the luck to enjoy.They never stopped me from chasing my dreams, let me be who I was, and never said that I was in a disadvantaged position as a girl. Instead, they always thought I could reach greater heights, that I shouldn't be 'one among the crowd', but that I must stand out. In spite of their many reservations, they let me take engineering as a career option, and now, when I almost regret it, they are supporting me in the attempt to get into a management course.

I do not know if many girls are this lucky. In fact, I have heard many of our relatives say, " So you have two girls", and my mom would say, "They are better than boys". ( At home, however, looking at how we make a mess of the whole place, she would say, "They are worse than boys")

I do not claim that girls are better than boys. They are equals. Each person has his or her own high points. That's what my parents taught me. And my experience as well. At my old school, for every competition, we had boys and girls fighting it out for the prize. There was no kind of discrimination. We were friends. In fact, almost till getting out of the school, I never even really bothered whether my friends were boys or girls. Coming here, however, has changed all that.

This is almost a damned conservative society where society draws strict lines between the genders. Can't a boy and a girl be just friends ? I too seem to be drawing unnecessary lines everywhere. This wasn't my bringing up.

I was brought up to be confident, to live my life on my own terms and most importantly,
'Be myself'.
I had forgotten that; I am reminding myself now that I needn't be a coward like this.
Let's see how I will live up to my expectations.