A little less noise

I come from a family of feminist. Not feminists. Just one. My mother. As far as i can remember, she always spoke up for the right. But the most admirable bit about her is she somehow (still) manages to balance speech with non-speech. In other words, she understood the significance of words as well as silence. It’s pretty clear to me that she doesn’t want to be unfair in any way. Interestingly, her gorgeous handwriting complements her respect for words. Which is also the area feminism—at least the online version—can take a cue from. It’s one thing to be vocal but quite another to be correct. My mother, for one, never felt the need to say a lot because she did much more. The fact that she couldn’t pursue college might sound fateful but her dedication in teaching little girls later doesn’t. Even today, at the age of 63, she is one of the hardest working people i know. I feel we need more women like her who firmly believe that there’s so much work to be done that there’s no space for complacent dialogues. Words that are too hollow to mean anything substantial. If you really want to make a difference to the society or to your gender, how about talking less and working harder towards achieving your goals? When you do that, excuses evaporate. We are in the midst of an era where we hear statements like “women are equal to men” again and again. Yes, so is sky blue and water wet. Those are established facts. (If you ask me, women are more equal than men.) The bigger argument is, are you speaking for yourself or hiding behind the facade of womanhood? 

PS. I still haven’t forgiven my ma for making me grow my hair for the initial 2.5 years of my life and tying chotis which make me look like a pretty girl in my jaded childhood photographs.