She grows up listening…you are weak not strong
On your own, you just won’t last long
Here, hold my hand, come, take my support
You have no one else, I am all that you have got
Being too young, she does as she is told
Always dependent…as her life does unfold,
On father, brother, husband or child
Making herself scared, submissive and mild
With the passing of time, they are all gone
She finds herself, for the first time, alone
Grappling with this new identity
Trying to find herself- who is she, really?
In the hours that stretch, in an unbroken line
She picks up the pieces of ‘herself’ who she left behind
She resets the boundaries of what she can and cannot do
Takes charge of her life, finding strength anew
She builds right from scratch, a person she once knew
Brings in new goals, new friends and a new point of view
In this altered life she leads now, she is fully in charge
This is her canvas, to make as colourful and as large
“Sahare bhi besahara kardete hain’ she says
There is strength in being alone, I find it in new and surprising ways
Be a friend to yourself, do what you want to do
Everyone will follow their heart, on one will invite you to
As she weaves happily through busy traffic, in her little car
I, her co passenger, catch her words like fireflies in a jar
Find a place for your own self, within yourself, she gently advises
Don’t wait for ashes all around, before the Phoenix rises…
