The Gift of Life. Review on Five Gifts You Would Like to Receive

Because of lack of the right category, I am posting this review in this section. I have no intentions of hurting anyone’s sentiments, and I apologize in advance if unknowingly I may end up doing so.

Confessions of a Little Girl’s Mind

As I was watching television a few months back(we can view a few Indian channels here now) – A particular news channel kept showing female fetuses that were found abandoned and left floating in a pond somewhere near Udaipur. The camera kept zooming in and out of this horrendous sight.

My thoughts somehow took me back to when I was 13 years old. Back then, my family and I traveled quite a bit. Whenever we went back to India, we tried to visit other places in addition to my hometown. During this particular trip, we decided to visit Allahabad and Varanasi. I am describing to you, my experiences during my trip to Allahabad.

It was in the month of August, the weather was still fairly warm. After reaching Allahabad, we checked in to a hotel and were making plans for the various places we could visit. We decided to visit Anand Bhavan, Allahabad Fort, Khusrau Bagh and a couple of more places. Since time was of the essence, on the top of our list however was the holy “Triveni Sangam”. We decided to visit “Triveni Sangam” the very next day. My parents(especially my mom) explained to me about the history of the holy place and also about it being a point of confluence of the three rivers Ganga, Jamuna and Saraswati. I was all excited about it. We reached our destination the next morning and rented a boat. As we wanted to offer our prayers and seek blessings, a priest also came along with us. Initially, he started explaining to us about the distinct color change of the river waters that we should look out for as we get closer to the point and telling us more about the history. He then said that he would offer a special puja for us.

Initially, we thought that he was looking to make a few extra bucks, until he opened his mouth to say the next sentence. He said, that the puja is SPECIAL, because it would help my parents conceive a “son”. All three of us were flabbergasted at this point. My parents kept insisting that they were not planning on having other kids and are content with their “only girl child”. The priest kept advising(whether we were listening or not) that my parents are ignorant and that without a “son” their marriage is incomplete and my mother has not fulfilled her duties as a wife. After a while, my dad lost his temper and told him to stop talking nonsense, at this point the priest argued and started swearing. The whole ambiance of “puja” and “holiness” was spoilt and all we cared about is somehow getting back to the banks of the river. I was a “silent spectator” to this incident that I have not forgotten yet, and perhaps never will. Somehow, we tried to forget the events of the day and went sight seeing other places the next day. We brushed it off, saying may be this is the kind of mentality that illiterates and the uneducated have.

The following day, my mom was waiting in the hotel lobby before we left. My dad had gone to look for a cab. I was just killing time, running around, and irritating my mom with all kinds of questions. An elderly lady(mid 50s, looked pretty well to do) came by and sat next to mom. They started having small talk, and out of nowhere, the woman asks “Bete ko saath nehi laye - ghar mein hai kya”? My mom looked surprised and answered that I was her only child. The woman looked shocked and she said that she felt very bad for my mom and pitied her, as she did not have a son and advised her that she should keep trying to have more kids until she has a son. My mom was speechless and thankfully, my dad arrived by the time and we left the hotel to head toward the airport.

We did not know what to figure - Did people generally have this kind of mentality, regardless of background? We really hoped that isn't the case. However, we have never gone back there since.

As a little girl, I did not quite understand the gravity of the situation back then but today I am thankful to God that I have never been made to feel any less than a “boy” and have always been told to do my best in whatever I like to do and focus on my career. But when I see flashes of such images and hear about incidents of torture due to dowry, my blood boils and I feel terrible. I am told things have changed for the better since I was a “little girl”, but really has it? I sure hope so!

Not flowers, not perfumes, not even diamonds. The BEST gift to a girl, would be the “Gift of Life”. At least I think so….Don’t you?