My Father's major gift of education for an empowered life

It was the year 2004 when I was a young, vibrant teenage girl & studying in the 8th grade of my school. As an adolescent girl, I was supposed to help my mother in the kitchen which was very commonly found in the girls of my age group but I was always kept unaware of such circumstances happening in our society then!

I was my daddy's little girl all the time, Mumma's princess & my Bhai's tiny adorable creature whom he could play with! During vacations, I was allowed to enjoy my life as per the scheduled routine which included studying, watching television, involving myself in creative skills, playing with friends but never included any kind of activity related to household work.

I still do remember, It was a hot summer evening when I was playing in the gardens in front of our house with my friends & suddenly a loud sound banged all our eardrums which came straight forward from a blue shaded house of our colony.

With surprising faces, we all moved slowly towards that house. It was locked from inside & continuous arguments were coming out through the tiny holes of its doors each time with loud volumes.

As we were young teenagers & school-going children, none of us dared to move towards the house & knock on the door. 

I then quickly rushed towards my home, standing outside with a breathless situation called out loud to my parents & told them about the great disturbance that was happening in that house. My father whom I can portray as a brave, courageous, bold & strong man in our society; ran towards the house along with three other men of our colony.

     

They all banged on the door of that house for about 5 minutes & then it opened. To all of our surprise, we found one middle-aged man of 50 years old, one old thin lady who looked about 72 to 80 years of age(his mother), one woman( his wife) nearly about 40 years old standing inside the house & their young daughter who was 24 years of age; sitting silently in one corner of the house.

My father along with his companions asked that man the reason for the noise. The man arrogantly came in front of everyone, told them that it's their family matter & they do not want anyone to get involved in it.

One thing about my father I skipped earlier to mention is that he is the most adorable & admirable person in our colony. To calm the man's emotional state; my father held the other one's hand by his left hand & then kept his right hand on the other one's arm. Within no minute that man's disturbed face got filled with serenity.

That moment was a kind of warm sensation to me & I was feeling proud to be the daughter of such an amazing person.

It was a gathering then! We got to know the real story behind those closed doors. The man with his family members was shouting at his 24-year-old daughter named Sakshi; who was not ready to get married at that age. 

Sakshi was an MBA graduate & wanted to do a job. She had an excellent academic background throughout her career & was very ambitious in nature.

Sakshi never had been into a relationship with a guy of her choice even now was not ready to commit to a relationship through marriage. The only vision of her life was to attain her self dignity & make her parents feel proud through her capabilities. 

But no one could understand her state of mind & be busy manipulating her for getting married to the person of their choice. As days went on conversations got converted to forceful actions!

Sakshi was no more allowed to step out of the home, talk with her friends & even was not allowed to attend any interviews for a job. She was confined to one room in her own house.

It was really too pathetic to hear about that amazing girl, carrying lots of dreams in her eyes & struggling hard to make it possible. I heard my mother whispering from behind to one of the ladies of the colony that Sakshi once used to teach me when I was a 3-year-old kid & my mother wished me to become like Sakshi one day.

People of our colony, who joined the fray started doing brief analytical conversations about marriage & dreams of a girl existing in society. Meanwhile, I gave a look towards Sakshi & was mesmerized to see that face with no regrets & shining very brightly with full of passion to fulfill her dreams at any cost.

All of a sudden my father stood up, told everyone to keep silent & to listen to him. I was really feeling hungry at that time. Hunger of Wisdom!

I knew that my father would tell something about the present matter which then can be hardly denied by any one of us; participating in full of enthusiasm. 

"Every girl is a blessing to society", My father started saying with a calm voice to the gathering & at that moment; I was more empowered to hear those words being his daughter!

He then continued "Not only Sakshi, but every girl also has the right to live in a society in the way they wish for! It should be clear that when a girl gets educated; the entire nation gets educated & when a girl becomes self-dependent; she then possesses miraculous powers that shower divine peace in the community, society & even the whole world.  Then why to pull behind ourselves from growing, to see our generation living a more happy & prosperous life?" 

There was a strong wave of silence & people were not able to turn their faces away from my father. Suddenly, one old man among the gathering stood up with a confusing face & asked Sakshi's father, "If you were not willing to allow her for a job then you could have asked her to do household works like we practice the same with our daughters instead of spending lots of money on their education"

The moment, that old man mentioned wasting money on girls' education; I felt like giving a punch on the man's face😠 but anyhow controlled my rage😣.

Sakshi's father told everyone that though his financial position was not good yet he spent money on her education because he wanted to see his daughter happy & her happiness lied in getting an education. And now! my father congratulated him for his love, devotion, sacrifices that he did just to see his daughter happy.

The man got surprised as he could merely understand the meaning of the compliments my father gave him in front of everyone. "What if  Sakshi gets married to someone, whom you choose for her then quitting her dreams, doing household works & living an aimless life without having any rights over her own family & getting suppressed by her husband in an unjudicial way?", My father asked in a calm manner to Sakshi's father.

There were no more responses. I got goosebumps whole over my body because being a girl; I could hardly imagine such circumstances. 

My father continued saying, 'Education is the only way to make our children may be either a girl or boy to be a better human being dealing wisely with all the aspects of reality.'

Everyone praised the thoughts of my father & even Sakshi's father too agreed to the same. Now! Sakshi's face was glowing more than earlier; as she got an opportunity to prove herself & fulfill her dreams.

It was not only a message to Sakshi's family but also to the entire colony. The whole concept was related to the empowerment of young girls through education, leading their life with self-respect & enjoying human rights without any obstructions. 

Today, I work on the values that I learned from my primary institution. Education is a weapon for human beings then why waste this gem in the pool of gender discrimination created by ordinary people like us. 

So together, Let's be a part of the society that believes & works upon equality!

Also published in : 

https://www.womensweb.in/2022/06/my-fathers-gift-of-education-for-an-empowered-life/