FORGIVENESS: IT'S NECESSARY TO HEAL…

…I want my life ‘liveable’, so I chose to forgive…

-said she with such a sparkle in her beautiful brown eyes, that the beauty of those pure depths beheld me and communicated a truth for lifetime.

This is me reflecting on the events of past months and occupying the window berth on a passenger train that will transport me to my destination, Delhi in next 10 hours. It was precisely 1 month and 2 days ago when the news of police uncovering an illegal prostitution centre made headlines and the news of minor prostitutes being returned to their homes swept like a fire in the entire village. The reason was a 16-year-old girl who was sent back home.

Where on one hand, the government celebrated their success in locating the victims of prostitution back to their homes, the village community, with total devotion, was busy in dislocating and deporting the girl. Every morning with brewing of the tea was brewed a murky image of the girl and during the day were circulated superstitious myths about her existence as an ex-prostitute- a pollutant. It was my annual summer stay at my grandparents’ and I would have gladly remained a passive observer to the entire happening if I would not have collided and made friends with Padma that evening.

Source- Pinterest By- Justin Gabbard

This beautiful girl has remarkably changed my understanding of the world the day when she, amidst one of our conversations on prostitution, declared that she has forgiven her abusers- that she also does not harbour any resentment towards the villagers or the society that despised her existence. This thought disturbed me but despite of my numerous attempts I have not been able to shake her resolute spirit that day. All her ideas about feeling better after forgiving have not made much sense to me up until a while ago when a girl, my fellow passenger spilled coffee on me.

When I have to cover a long journey with the experience of being burnt and the shadows of the person who did that, then holding onto hatred and despair, now I understood, from my earlier interaction with Padma, will be an unrelenting torture on oneself, an act that will hollow out a creature from within. So, in line with the one who “forgave the unforgivable” I decided to forgive my fellow passenger, making the journey survivable.

BY POORVA

Comments

STORY WRITING COMPETITION

30 WORDS STORY WRITING COMPETITION THEME- ' A WOMAN IN BUS' RULES: 1. You can submit a story or a snippet word limit- 30 words . 2. Story/snippet should be strictly original and only in English . 3. The entry should not contain any obscene, provocative, defamatory, sexually explicit, hate inciting, or otherwise objectionable or inappropriate content. 4. Anonymity is not permitted. The participant should use their registered name and mail id to submit their response. SUBMISSION PROCEDURE: 1. Theme for the competition is - 'A WOMAN IN BUS' . Your story/snippet should revolve around this given theme. 2. Type your entry in the comment section . 3. One participant can only submit one entry . 4. A time window of 40 minutes will be given to submit your entries in the comment section after which no entry will be entertained. 5. Deadline for receiving entries is 4th Feb, 2:40pm . CRITERIA FOR WINNER: 1. Entry should fulfill all the terms and conditions of the competition ...

ROLE OF DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS IN SKILL DEVELOPMENT

India is a country with one of the largest youth population in the world. More than 62% of the population is in the working age group. According to some estimates, around 250 million people would be joining the workforce in the next decade. This will greatly enhance the degree of competition, which would eventually lead to, as Darwin said, “Survival of the Fittest”. Employees would be required to have more and better skills than they originally need to survive. Not only this, globalisation too has played a major role in reflecting the need for a better, skilled workforce, both for the developed and developing nations. It has also been observed that nations with highly skilled human capital tend to have higher GDP and per capita income levels and they adjust more effectively to the challenges and opportunities of the world of work and jobs. Against this backdrop, India is driving unique initiatives to convert its demographic potential into a dividend that will fuel the countr...

ABOUT US, FROM US

“No one is born a good citizen; no nation is born a democracy. Rather, both are processes that continue to evolve over a lifetime.Young people must be included from birth. A society that cuts itself off from its youth severs its lifeline; it is condemned to bleed to death.” - Kofi Annan. It is the youth of today that moulds the future of tomorrow. It is them who have to live through the consequences of policies taken today and this makes it unconditional, but imperative to give their words a voice and equip them with few skills that good governance of tomorrow calls for, namely, critical thinking, analytical flair and research capabilities which shall enhance their prudence as torch bearers of the better future envisaged by all. And the responsibility for this falls on the shoulders of centres of education which impart excellency to the youth blooming under their wings. Miranda House ...

POLICY CENTRE AND GENDER LAB

Search This Blog