Picture Prompt – A mother and a daughter talking to each other .
Seeing this picture , my mind immediately related it with one of my own pictures with my daughter .
The relation of a mother and a child is such a wonderful relation in this world . It won’t be wrong if I call a mother’s love as divine . The mother nurtures the baby for 9 months within herself and the bond so established is the purest , selfless and loving . No doubt , a mother’s love is the same whether the child is a son or daughter but I think the relation with a daughter becomes more friendly as she grows up . I have a daughter who is eleven years old now . I love watching her grow as she has started shopping for little things on her own, going to the nearby market on her own ,collecting some money in her gullak and then asking me to accompany her to the bank where she tries to fill the bank deposit form herself . I love her even more when she does her own make-up, wears my heels and looks in the mirror twisting herself at different angles and also clicks selfies . I love when she suggests me too while shopping or getting dressed up for a party . She is now less a daughter , more a friend to me , even behaving like a daadi sometimes . Watching her grow so fast brings smiles and sometimes wets the eyes . I hope every mother can relate to such feelings .
As she turned 11 , I had a constant thought that I should prepare my daughter about menstruation too . It’s better to prepare her in advance before she gets her first period . I was confused how and when I should talk to her , I even searched online . But the more complex I thought it to be , simpler it became . In the month of April , I was writing a series named #astitva on women empowerment on my blog . And in the same month , my daughter had to participate in Model United Nations —an academic activity in which the students are divided into committees and are assigned a country on which they have to research , write , speak and debate , choosing an agenda of own choice . One day when she came back home from school she told me about her committee and agenda for the project . And it came as a happy and proud moment when she told me that she had chosen Women Empowerment and Gender Equality as her agenda . She herself researched quite a lot about all this and made a rough draft covering the topics of violence , health , education , trafficking etc . Then to give her project a shape , she came to me “Mumma, you are writing about women nowadays on your blog . Tell me all you have written about women and women Empowerment ” I felt so good that my blog series was somehow making a subconscious mark on my daughter’s mind too . And now was the time to bring that subconscious into full conscious . I started sharing almost every topic with her – Dowry , Bride Burning , Foeticide , Acid attack and Menstruation too . Yes , the topic Menstruation that I wanted to talk about with my daughter became so easy being part of her project . It went so easy to tell her about the hormonal changes the girls go through like she could see her underarm hair growing etc . The time spent during the days when we shared our views about women Empowerment made me realize that my little girl had started behaving mature , especially when I saw her writing about SDG 5 too . It was great for a mother and daughter to watch together some videos on child Bride , Foeticide , Dowry on YouTube and answer her queries like – “Mumma , why are only girl children killed ? ” When she saw the pics of acid attack victims on Google , her immediate question was – ” Mumma , Un logon ko punishment mili jinhone ye kiya tha ? ” My daughter had started thinking on these lines and this indicated success of my blog . You know in those days only , the movies Padman and Hichki both were to be aired on television . Earlier I preferred her to watch only Hichki but then I didn’t mind watching Padman too together with her . Watching the movie together made the topic Menstruation an easy discussion for both of us and no more a taboo . It was then that I shared an article with her about menstruating women being banished to sheds in few villages . She gave quick angry response to it which I welcomed .
As a mother , I felt delighted to see my child talking and thinking on mature topics . As a woman , I felt glad that a future empowered woman was in the making . As a blogger , I felt satisfied that the women Empowerment message I wanted to spread was actually getting spread .
When my daughter was ready for her final project presentation , she was rehearsing at home and I was elated when I heard – “Women Empowerment and Gender Equality is not just a project , it has to be a lifestyle ”
This post is a part of Blog birthday celebration contest hosted by Zainab and Geethica . May you celebrate many more birthdays in years to come . May God always bless you with lots of happiness and success .
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