YES WE BLEED!!

One day, … when the dew drops were taking shape, when the birds were sweeping their nests, when you were fighting for your blanket, dawn was dressing up for it’s entry… …

At the same time,my sister was complaining of me snoring loud ……for I was in deep sleep… ..

I wasn’t alone… ….i was with my dreams… ..i was busy cheering up with chaos .

It was when I was with my life, on one single table enjoying our cold coffee… 

My brain was weaving me stories of a girl In a village …..this was the Same village,we had visited on trip last weekend… .

I could see the girl walk back home from school, tired and wavy… ..

She reaches her home, entered the bathroom and… ….

      let all the tears out… .she was crying out for help…..she was weeping her heart out, Just to find someone… ..someone to lean on… ..

But , is some soul, suiting this filter present on earth? 

Someone who could understand that she was growing up… 

Puberty was sharing the bed with her 

And menarche had pulled her blanket away… ….

With a heavy heart and disturbed mind… .

She set out a sigh of grief that marked the end of her sober crying… …

“it’s over,” she said to herself, indicating the need to move out of the bathroom… ..

“Maa”…. She called , out of hope to see eyes filled with love… .

“Can I get a sanitary pad? “

What? Why? When… ……questions were shot on her face… ..

After the girl had set her foot of the stage, after she had explained everything to her mom… …

She held up her hand… .

“Wait I’ll get u a cloth… …we can’t spend 

On those pads and all

Just pull off your tongue and use this… .”

Nothing can be said,…..felt the girl and accepted the happenings… 

Little did she know that it was going to get worse… .

Her mom went out and conveyed this to the family ….

” ask her to get some dollars stitches soon… she won’t wear skirts from now… ..nor is She allowed to walk around in the village at night .”

Her mother then called her out… …

” look here.. .this is your room for 5 days now… …there Is a jug of water and some blankets… …I’ll call u for dinner… .until then don’t even think of coming out… “

The girl looked at the window pane… …a stroke of dust flew off when her mom shut the door in full force… .

No people, no pipes… …just her and her face on the window… …she sat there and started playing with sand… ..waiting for the moon to burp out …..

With dark clouds, the sky was looking at everything that was happening… ..

Her brother, who was sleeping until then… .got up… .

He looked for her,but couldn’t find her 

…

After all the rooms and balconies were checked, the last option was this weird room… .

He had seen mom staying in this room for days… …he went and unlatched the door… the door was screeching out as if it was trying to stop some things from happening… ..

The boy creeped into the room… …held his sister… ..wiped her tears and said… ” see I found out your secret place …..

Don’t cry… .you will find another place place… “

Not any word would calm her… …..her eyes were drenched… .

The little boy whispered… “don’t cry didi… ..ok… I will also tell you where all I used to hide… ” 

Here the boy held her hand… …and there another hand banged the door…..

“Gullu… ….Aeee who let you in here… ..And why are you sitting with this girl!? .

She will be in this room for 5 days now… ..and it would be better if you don’t even think about her now ..

Or else daddy will you throw u in the fields… .

Come soon! U mad boy… ..”

Gone… .gone with the winds were the hopes that had kept her charm alive… .

The sound of slamming that metallic door is still being heard… ..

For that was the last… ..when her tears had taken a break… ….

“Gudiya… …come down… …” 

It was granny yelling as her voice lost itself in the noise of the latch… ..

As the girl moved towards the dining room, she saw… ..the whole family was sitting around the dishes… …

And she was given a corner with a banana leaf… .

Food was served in……and instructions too…

” eat what is served… ..Then keep the leaf with you… .

Wake up early in the morning and throw it along with your cloth…..far away in the sewer… .

Be careful… ..nobody watches you, else… .

You won’t get food for a day… “

What do you think happens next?

Without a second thought… ….gudiya had to agree to these rules… ..

Forget waking up… ……she was latched in a room and was still using the same cloth… .

The worm of leakage had eaten up half her brain… ….

With swollen eyes… .and a painful back, when she heard the sounds of milking ……she banged on the door… .

.the worker at their cowshed unlatched the door and she went out to complete the task… ..

She came back and saw her mother cleaning the front yard… ..

“Mom… ..take this,I brought a flower for you from the temple… “

….

She faced all the scoldings she was supposed to… …for breaking the rules of not going to the temple… …

How gloomy her life looked… …

A disheartened Gudiya spent the rest 4 days this plain… …

And on the dawn of the 6th day… ….

She was sitting behind the cowshed… …

Her mom brought in a bucket of water and left her drenched… ..

She then declared, “today you can go to school ……but stay away from all the males …”

A seed of hope again looked for light… .

As she was drying her hair up… …drops of water fell on me… ..

And I realized 

…….it was my mom who was spilling water on me to wake me up… and all this was a dream. 

Woh kehte hai na… …

Subah ke sapne such Hote hai… .

Maine such ko hi sapne main dhoondna chaha 

Just for a minute, if you feel the depth of this story… …..

No matter there is concern for women power… how well developed is every field with women… ..

Yet a lot of them suffer silently… ..

Suffer for these 5 days, the days when they fall into their menstrual cycle! 

These practices are still continued… ….

There exist a number of myths too…..

These are the peak days when a girl needs utmost comfort…but many girls… ..still don’t have it… ..in the long run, when rape culture is addressed, women equality is addressed, the myths and illpractices of menstruation are neglected… .these are killing women too!! 

Women bleed… …they bleed for formation… ..

Not at the cost of their self destruction though!!

Is the society humane in its action, or is it OK to neglect few life threatening issues?? 

Ask this question to yourself… …

And tell the world… …what’s wrong in there… ….

Ask me for a selfie, ask me to pout 

Let me take a leave, I’m swati signing out,!! … ..