Dear Daughter I will be there always for you
Daughters are gifts given to those who deserve the best.
Fourth Sunday in September is Daughters’ Day. A day for all those lovely girls who bring cheer, color and variety into our lives, for me every day is my daughter’s day.
It’s really very difficult to think of happiness without pondering when a person was the happiest in their lives. When I did that thinking, it was so easy to recall the two events that have made me the happiest in my life. The first is most definitely the birth of my first son Athar & the other is the birth of my daughter Aleena. Time has passed since they were born and I haven’t forgotten the beautiful moments of their births.
There are so many things I want to say and so many thoughts in my mind. I don't know where to start and what to say. I still remember Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin walked on the moon on July 20th, 1969, becoming the first two humans to do so. On July 20th 2009 Almighty gifted me the angel, my daughter Alena; my moon was in my arms. My little Angel was born in the evening; I couldn’t sleep after her birth. I just laid in the bed all night, holding my angel and feeling the joy and happiness surrounding her arrival.
Life is such a lovely thing when I see my angel sleeping in my arms. I smile when I see her smile. I would like the time to stop, and stay for ever in this happy moment. Nothing happiest has ever happened to me. I discover her everyday more, and the more I look at her, the more I love her. I would like to spend all my life in this moment when she looks at me, smiling at me. I simply love her.
On the occasion of daughter’s day I was very disappointed to read that in India nearly five million female foetuses are aborted every year, more than 10,000 girl babies are victims of infanticide and every sixth girl child’s death is due to gender discrimination. Also, 50 per cent of all sexual assaults are committed against girls aged 15 or younger. I was shocked to read the research survey conducted by Nanhi Chhaan, a non profit organization, In some districts of North India, the number of girls is even less than 800 per 1,000 boys. By 2020, it is estimated that we will have 2.5 crore grooms without a bride.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau, 29 dowry-related deaths every day but women's organizations say the actual figure is 10 times higher. One advertisement outside of an ultrasound clinic summed up, Pay 500 rupees now and save 50,000 later. A study by British medical journal, said last year that ten million girls have been killed by their parents in India in the past 20 years, either before they were born or immediately after.
In spite of Daughters are considered to be God’s gift to parents as they ever loving and caring, it is very unfortunate that the fear of dowry and other social evils Sex determination tests, though banned are being done so that the female foetus can be terminated in the womb itself. Girls are not welcome, though they bring so much joy and happiness in our lives.
Finally the government of India should set a target date by which the country will have balanced sex-ratios at birth. The future plan needs to give a fair deal to women by abandoning fertility targets and replacing it with solid commitments to restore sex-ratio at birth. There has to be official recognition that small families are increasingly achieved by eliminating girls.
A daughter is the happy memories of the past, the joyful moments of the present, and the hope and promise of the future. Happy Daughter’s Day……..
