*Mirrors*

She has always loved them!The mirrors!

Because she always believed that they reflect everything that falls on them!

That there would be no discrepancy in that!

They had been close to her heart!

Closer to her soul!

Enriching her! Making her fall in love again and again!

With herself!

But, these days,

She didn't really like them!

Because now she knew that they never reflect everything!

She couldn't see the reflection of her soul! 

She could realize that there is always something missing!

She just wonders all the while about what went wrong with them!

And She couldn't really figure out what!

So she started hating them!

The mirrors!

And but the mirrors couldn't stop laughing at her!

They just do the job of reflecting things that fall on them!

And that they knew that she had lost her soul, somewhere to life!

And She was searching that ones that left!

Like a blind inquiring the light!

The mirrors now reflect the absence! 

That's what they can do! Their job!

She was a human then! She is a human now!

SHE

She is born!

From where she will bring someone new to the world!

With the pain no other being in this world can endure!

Once, she was considered as a child vending machine!

A source of money to the groom's family!

A cook constrained to the Kitchen in a four walled building!

Still,

She was a human then!

She is a human now!

She is the moon!

That guides every moment in the darkness!

And then she compromises!

For if she fails as a moon to guide you,

She becomes a star!

Not because she cannot be a moon, but because she loves to sacrifice!

Because she know that a moon just shines, but a star burns to shine!

She now rules this globe,

With her charm and wild love,

With her confidence and self-esteem!

With the terrain under her becoming more grateful for her presence!

Every second of it!

She just lives like she never did anything!

She just lives with you!

She was a human then!

She is a human now!

A few examples...
Malala Yusafzai

She has come up, from those terror attacks to educate the people of her kind!
Ready to fight any moment for what the womanhood really needs!


Marie Curie

She has destroyed herself with radiation, to give this cosmos, cancer treatments!
Breaking the stereotype of men being awarded Nobel prize all the time for discovering something new! For being a scientist!

Neerja Bhanot

Neerja Bhanot

She has died saving people in a plane, with courage!
For she thought she was a human first!
Before being a woman of good looks and sweet words!

Laxmi, Rita and Rupa and many more...

Laxmi, Rita and Rupa- Acid attack survivors

They have been bold to show up on the stage!
To stand as a model, even after their skin was burnt in an acid attack!
To prove that beauty is more than beautiful looks and radiating skin!

Mary Kom and Sania Mirza (2 among millions of them)
She takes up the trophies, not for what she looks like,
But because/for her hard work and inner self!

Like Oprah Winfrey...

She could face harassment

And but comes out of it,
Like the phoenix!
Like that bird from fire!
She comes so pure after that,
More bold and beautiful!

Something for men!

If you are a human, find out,
Why wouldn't a woman's voice be heard?
For gender equality and work parity,
Against harassment and molestation!
And for not being treated just as a flesh covered with clothes!

Why wouldn't she be contemplated as your counterpart?
Why wouldn't she be acknowledged for her work rather than her skin or body, when she becomes your leader?

If you could answer these questions,
You are celebrating this day!
With your mom, sister, cousins, friends and your loved ones!
And I am sure, you are being respected as a gentle man!

Just remember,
She was human then!
She is a human now!
Happy Women's day to you all!

The fault in her stars!

A poem Inspired by THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green!

They knew that they were special,
Special to each other!

Their hands have been together,
Not destined to be forever!
His hand holding her,
Which was never a matter of concern for her,
Until he left it!

That feeling of protection,
The care not to hurt her,
He always tries his best!
But he would never realize that they would be hurt forever!
Their throbbing for each other's presence,
Would only inflict more on the wound!
And that the absence will always be noticed.

She has always been in love,
With someone or something,
That has never been two-sided.

That was new for her,
The care and the protective love,
From the bottom of his heart!
He for the first time showed her.
And then this time, for the first time, she couldn't blame the cupid,
But then her own stars.

They stand together, everyday, he and she!
Their eyes tangle often into the unknown territory,
Moving away when it churns inside their stomach!
And then into the warmth of their body at a distance!
They live inside, they die inside!

The presence is not always rewarding!
As that will always end up in the void!
The fault in her stars!

A quote form the book!

Thanks to the obscurity!

She saw the sky,

Where there were the stars,

The moon and the stars!

They were there, 

So deeply pinned to the black carpet,

They were poignant and poetic,

Lovely and stealing, 

Blinking right through her eyes!

Now that she watched for a few more seconds,

The black carpet of all,

Was now on her thoughts,

Beyond the twinkles and the behind the big angel! 

She now noticed,

That not only the moon is loving, 

And not only the stars were piercing her heart so deep!

But,

She realized that she would have been numb,

Numb and dumb to that elegance,

To the brightness of what she loved!

If she did not have the darkness,

The twilight behind her moon and star!

And she concluded,

She loved the stars and the moon,

And, but, she thanked the obscurity,

For showing her the tenderness!

In life,
There would be so much to be happy,
To be delighted of,
But the scale of our happiness is decided,
Decided only by the scale of sadness we undergo,
Endorse the bliss to the depth of your endless heart,
And but, do not forget to thank the melancholy!

Beyond every change, she was human!!!

Part-2

As a continuation to the article Beyond every change, she was human!!!, here I present the reason behind the few choices provided for transgenders in their life. Before going to the real problem faced by these marginalized people, I have to say about one of the successful person among them. It is +Kalki Subramaniam. She is a dual Master's degree holder, which is one of the greatest struggle even for a normal person. She has addressed in lots of famous universities around the world like IIT Madras, Jindal law school and so on. She is a multi-faceted person. She is a transgender rights activist, an actress, a poet and a entrepreneur. She was the first Indian transgender person to act as a lead character in the movie named 'Narthagi', which portrays the feeling of a transgender, their fears, love and true happiness in life. Her name has decorated many awards like the 'Life time achievement award' from the Lioness club in the 2009, 'Outstanding Social  Worker award' from the Junior Chamber International Pondicherry White Town in the year 2013. She was invited by the government of the United States of America for a 16 days Human Rights activism & Awareness program through IVLP to Washington DC, New York and Salt Lake City. She is the first trans sexual foreign national to be invited by the United States government. She has also been invited internationally to speak on marginalized people's rights. She has found Sahodari foundation, to help the transgenders get independence in life.

There are lots of transgenders, who have achieved a lot. But she is my personal favorite because, she is a writer. Her book, 'Kuri Aruthen' has won the Best Poet award from the Born2Win Trust, Chennai and she is also working on two other books presently. Another thing that makes her so special to me is the recent TEDx talk (Sep 2015). TEDx talk is a dream for many youngsters, especially me. She spoke on the title 'The necessity of social equality', which is really inspiring. Her dream which was once to interview the actress Suhasini (Wife of Manirathnam), came true, only to her surprise, it was Suhasini who was interviewing Kalki after the film Narthagi. She quotes in this talk, "If a boy who was searching who he was, when others were searching what to have as a career, is able to go a lot of distances in life after becoming a woman, then I believe anyone can do anything in this world. The achievements are not categorized according to gender. If you believe in yourself, then you can do anything." My interpretation of video is that, these words can be said by anyone. But she stands there in the stage, delivering a speech and the sentence, "I'm Kalki. I am a trangender and I'm proud of it", makes her unique.

So, here is a human, heightened by knowledge, proud for who she is and fighting for what people like her really want - respect and dignity from the society.

I mentioned about Kalki to show what the most of the transgenders lack- education, which she had the privilege of having (Yes. You are reading it right. Education , which is a fundamental right of every Indian becomes a privilege for transgenders) and hence made her stand apart from everyone. 

In my first post on transgenders, I promised that I would talk with Leela again, to convey that to her. Many people gave their views: what they thought about transgenders before reading the article and how the article changed their view. Many requested to talk to Leela as soon as possible and record her response. Yes, I did call her. It was after a long hesitation and fear. My fear was that she would have given me a wrong number. After sitting and thinking in front of the phone for a long time, I called the number Leela gave. The number rang. So, I was relieved that at least it was a number that worked. Then after four to five rings, I was attended by the same voice that spoke to me before and the good thing was that she remembered me as a girl who took her a picture. But I had to make a series of calls to get some response.

First call.. 9.30 AM

I was shy to talk and she was busy cooking. I thought, except me everybody in this world is busy and asked when to call her. I was given the time as 2.30.

Second call.. 2.30 PM

I have never been so punctual to call someone. I called her that day, again. I was sure this time what to talk. But, she was not. She replied with a fear. I could feel that in her voice, a fear of talking to a stranger. I asked her if she had a account in Facebook and if I could share the article with her. She said she had a account but in a boy's name. I wanted to ask her few more questions. But, she again cut me short and asked me to call her after sometime.

Third call.. 4.30 PM

This was the second time in my life I was calling someone on the time they gave. Yeah!! I called her again and this time the voice was different. I was afraid that she has given the phone to someone to scold me for disturbing her again and again. To my surprise, I learnt that it was her daughter (This girl- Poornima, again a transgender, called Leela her Amma when she spoke to me). She said her Amma was sleeping. I asked where they were living and with whom. She said they were three people living together in Nungambakkam. Poornima, Leela and Leela's mother (She did not say me her name, but said she was also a transgender). Leela was sleeping and so I decided to talk to Poornima.

"I was avoided by my family. I had no place to go and finally I was taken by my Amma.", she said. 

"Did you study?", it was me.

"Yes, I studied till 12th. The government helped me complete my studies.", she said.

"Wow!!! Then? Did you try to study after that?", I questioned her. 

"Yes. I wanted to study after that. But that is when my parents left me. They questioned me that what change would studying bring to me. I did not know what to say at that time."

Her voice trailed off.

"Its fine. Don't feel bad about that. But even if you cannot go to the college on daily basis, you can join distance education if you really want to study.", I suggested her.

"Yes, I can do. I should try that.", she said.

I also suggested her to find about Sagothari foundation run by Kalki and asked her to try getting some help from them.

I was a bit afraid to tell her but told this, "If you can start a shop or something like that, you will be treated differently. You will be treated with respect. The Sagothari foundation can help you that way or even I know how to make chocolates. If you are interested I can teach you how to make them and it will fetch you a lot of money. Actually, people will not look down upon you."

I don't know where did I get that strength. I talked continuously. 

Thank god. She did not cut the call. She should have understood my concern. 

"Yeah. If I have a thought, I will call you. Take my number too. In case if you want to talk anything, you talk to me. My mom feels uncomfortable to talk to strangers.", she said.

I thanked her for talking to me.

End of the call.

I feel what they need is not money. But, they need the courage to come out. They need acceptance. They need education to get all this. If not formal, an education to run a shop at least. Begging is not the way of life. I heard a friend saying to me, "Whenever I see a transgender demanding money from us, I do not get irritated. They demand because they feel that they have the right to do that. They feel that they would have become like us if they were given a chance."
My opinion goes with him. They are rejected for what they were not responsible. To finance the operation to convert their private parts itself becomes a challenge for them. Education becomes out of picture at an age they need it most. Support by the u r loved ones is not provided when they badly need it. They get a wrong impression that dressing and making up their face is the only thing they can do. This has to be changed. I don't have the idea how it can be done. But, will be proud to help them to the any extent. Yes, I believe I will do. If you can, don't hesitate. 
Accept them as who they are.

Post Script: I tried to serch Leela's FB page. But it was difficult to trace. I don't have the courage to call her again for that. The next time I call her, I would have figured out a way to help them all.

Go ego!!!

Shalu was Ritu's best friend. Troubling teens, both were. They were in 10th grade and good at studies, top ten in the class. So nobody could complain about their mischevousness.

Shalu's house was near the temple. They used to go there and have fun. She was very lean, while Ritu was a bit fat. Forget their size differences, they were hell to handle together.

Shalu bought a new dress, a blue one with sandal stripes. It was a full hand dress with a netted shall. It was too good but too big for her. So she offered that new dress to Ritu. It looked perfect on her.

The day came, when Shalu left Ritu to another school. She resisted to go there. But her parents pushed her too much. Ritu was angry. When Shalu came to tell a good bye, Ritu did not talk. Even when she cried hugging her, Ritu did not yield. Both were very much hurt. Ritu wanted her to stay. Who would she have to talk? Who would she have to study with? Who would she have to tell about her crush on some boy? But, she did not ask her to stay. She did not tell her best friend, how important she was to her. How would she? Her ego won. Shalu left the place.

Shalu, on one random day, came to Ritu's house. She shouted at the top of her voice, asking for her blue dress.

'If you could not understand me, then no way you can have my dress.', she went near Ritu and said.

Ritu was breathless and was profusely sweating when she woke up. She became pale. Whenever she crosses Shalu's house while going to the temple, she would say, 'I am sorry baby. I cannot return your dress. I am sorry for not stopping you from going away. I am sorry for not understanding you that day.' How would she give her? Shalu died a month ago. It was a suicide and no one knew the reason. It was rumored that she could not bear being away from her family and her best friend.

In our lives, there comes a stage where our ego tries to conquer the true love we have for some people. It just makes the time we had with them a ghost. If we could forget that ego thing and show them how important they are to us, everything will be fine. Just fine. Try killing ego and you will never regret it. It works in every realtionship, frienship or love or anything.

It's dangerous!!!

She was walking through the night.
The yellow light from the lamp,
Made her shadow appear ghostly.
The light glowed hauntingly reflecting on her dress.
She looked less human.
Her eyes wandered, searching for someone.

She looked into the trees.
They did not move an inch, for they were afraid,
Not of her, but of her tears.

Suddenly,
She felt a chill on her spine.
She knew the reason.
She found 'that someone' she was searching.
She smiled.
Her eyes searched intensely.
A breeze blew the hair on her face,
She then closed her eyes, allowing the breeze to embrace her.
The trees astonished by what they saw,
Made a 'swish' sound but stopped the second she looked at them.
She then walked away saying "Yes. I do"

His soul wept in the shadow,
For the answer she gave him.
He promised he would never show up.
But his soul stayed, where he met with that terrible accident and left her helpless.
And the trees mourned his sadness.
He stayed just to hear from her once again.
He never left that tree after he died.

For that darkness and the chill never scared her.
She knew he would be waiting for her everyday.
Why else would the breeze ask her, 'Do you still love me?'?
She said to herself , "Yes. Still, I do"
And walked to their home.
Like the day they were walking together after the dinner.
Only to end up losing him.

The man who killed him, was drinking again!
Driving in the dimly lit road.
The tree's 'swish' was heard again.
The breeze blew.

His car now tumbled over a ditch.

The same place where she lost him.
It was never an accident.
There was never a ditch before.

Don't drink and drive. It's dangerous.

He still stands under that tree and watches everyone,
And the breeze blows whenever someone drink and drive,
For his love walks everyday to say him her love.