When such strange status statements appeared in women-friends' profiles, I was intrigued.When that message came in, I was amused. Amused at the diverse ways we can think. Amused that after years of coyness, we are choosing to shrug it off with a pseudo-coy statement. The message cleared the intrigue and challenged me. I remembered the last year's challenge. I failed it. Because I was thinking too much about people's reaction. I was afraid by the barge of queries that may come up. And the year passed.
*****
Maima (approximately translated as 'aunty') has weeks when the right hand swells up like a big balloon. Not only the movement of the hand gets restricted, but also the pain etches itself out on her face as dark patches under the eyes. Once, she had curly long hair. After all the sessions, her hair is now short and thinning. Yet she smiles every time we meet, asking me if I am keeping well or not. I don't have the guts to ask her how she is.
*****
When the message settled into my inbox, I only thought about her. I thought about women like her. The only question that crossed my mind was: Could she have a better life if she was more aware? Or her family was more aware? The answer seems rhetorical. I responded to the message.
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Image Courtesy: http://www.pursuegoodstuff.com/Events.htm
4 comments:
Courage is a strange thing - we really don't know whether we have it or not till the time we really need it - either for us or for somebody else. Blessed are those who get it when they need it.We can only pray " Klaanti amai khoma karo prabhu"
lovely-ly said ... "we really don't know whether we have it or not till the time we really need it "
I used to watch this sci-fi cartoon on tv, Johnny Q, which once said something like real courage is fighting back when you know you are scared. With new diseases afflicting women, new forums have to be opened, new fights have to be generated, new voices have to be raised. We are together in it comrade!
cheers somdatta!
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