On the eve of International Women's Day

I came across three news articles in Time this morning that shocked me beyond belief. The first reported that Beyonce was seen nursing her eight-week old while at lunch at an upscale restaurant in New York city. Did she choose to breast-feed her baby in public so as to advocate breast-feeding, or was she merely tending to the cries of a hungry newborn, the article speculated. Since when has something so natural and basic as a mother feeding her hungry infant begun to be the source of such immense controversy and debate? A lot of Americans decry breast-feeding in public as being "gross" and constituting "lewd behavior" or "indecent exposure". But has our sense of perception gone so awry that when we see a woman feeding her baby in public, we fail to see a mother responding to her child's need in the most natural way possible and instead wrongly construct a sexualized image of a woman 'wilfully' exposing her breasts in public? It seems that we are completely immune to provocative images of scantily-clothed women abundantly posted online and even in public places, but somehow we are violently averse to the sight of a mother nursing her young baby in public. Must a new mother then, never venture outside her house until her child grows old enough for her to stop nursing? Granted that we do live in a highly sexualized era, has society become so sex-centric as to go so far as vehemently condemning an innately biological act (when in public) which is but a natural consequence and aspect of new motherhood? Outrageous.

The second article I read was to do with the hottest controversy of the past week - Rush Limbaugh's ignorant and misogynistic remarks against a female student who was courageous enough to stand up for beliefs and raise her voice over an issue that is of consequence to millions of women. For a guy that walks around airports with a bunch of Viagra without a valid prescription, Limbaugh has some nerve to brand women rallying for contraception coverage as being "sluts". "She's having so much sex, she can't afford to buy enough contraception, and needs us, the taxpayers to pay for it", he said on air on his radio show recently. Limbaugh's remark shows a clear ignorance and misunderstanding of the female oral contraceptive pill - that it has to be taken everyday regardless of the amount of sexual activity, and that, to thousands of women, it doesn't just serve as a contraceptive, but acts as a major preventer of health risks, reproductive and otherwise. "Viagra is for a medical condition, but the birth control pill is a 'lifestyle choice'", say political commentators and policy-makers (male, obviously) in defense of the pill not being covered by insurance. So, a pill widely used by those with erectile dysfunction (among other medical conditions) is definitely not a "lifestyle choice", but a pill that prevents women from going through endless emotional and physical burdens from unwanted pregnancy is? And do cervical cancer, ovarian and breast cancer, irregular menstruation, polycystic ovarian syndrome, stroke etc. (which the pill protects against) not qualify as serious medical conditions? When are the legislators going to start viewing the pill as being vital to women's health, in preventing unwanted pregnancies and the need for abortion, and in protecting against severe health risks, and not just something that allows them to be promiscuous? Never mind all those promiscuous men that use Viagra "recreationally" without prescriptions.

The third article reported that a bill mandating pre-abortion ultrasound had been passed by the Virginia governor. An earlier draft of the bill required that women undergo an invasive trans-vaginal ultrasound pre-abortion in order to "make a more informed decision", irrespective of whether or not the fetus had been conceived from rape or incest. In the face of strong opposition and outcry, the bill was amended to require the less invasive abdominal ultrasound, with termination of pregnancies resulting from rape and incest being excepted. I am yet to fathom how showing a woman who has painfully arrived at the decision to undergo an abortion for whatever reason, an image of the child she is choosing not to have, will help her make a more informed decision. The intention is obviously to attempt to guilt the woman into feeling that her decision makes her a horrible person and changing her mind about it. It is cruel and insensitive, at best. How about channelling efforts into ensuring contraception coverage and working towards social change that demands accountability and responsibility of men that carelessly impregnate women and then abandon them, Governor?

Apparently, biology is destiny for women, even in one of the world's most developed nations in the second decade of the 21st century. Ironically, all three of these news-articles have been splashed in the media on the eve of International Women's Day. So much for womens' lib.

The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow

My mother always says that the sun always rises after the longest and darkest of nights. And however, cold and gloomy it may be until you wait for the sun, you have to plough along and keep faith. Life will never be smooth sailing all the way. The key to surviving the obstacles that are thrown your way is to tell yourself that you are growing in experience as you learn to cope. That what's not killing you is making you tremendously stronger. That, in the future, you will know better than to make the mistakes that got you into this soup in the first place. That God is looking over you the whole time and has a wonderful plan in store for you, you just don't see it yet. And that you will know of that plan only once you've seen yourself through your difficulty with your head held high. But in the meantime you must realize that however discouraged and disillusioned you may be, however angry and bitter you may feel, however much you scream "Why me?", your situation will not change unless you make the choice to change your attitude from one of despair and hatred to one of quiet reflection, learning, gratefulness and optimism. On beautiful, happy days we thank God for blessing us with beauty and happiness. But, on days that are dark and depressing, one must thank God also for putting us through the test to bring out the strength in us that we never knew we possessed, and that we are now armed with to attack the rest of our lives. Through difficult days, it is easy to fall prey to blaming people and circumstances, to losing faith and to becoming self-destructive. But one must keep reminding oneself of God's wonderful plan for us and the fact that there is a reason why the cosmos put us through one's ordeal. One must vow to become the best person that one can - to help and support friends & family, to make them happy, to never react negatively towards people who don't behave in the best manner with us, to never even for once stoop to the lowliness of people that have caused us pain, but rather to continue being a decent, well-meaning, kind-hearted individual who is sensitive but firm enough to stand up for himself. For as is said in the Bhagavad Gita, it as much a sin as to suffer injustice without protest as it is to perpetrate it. So, however hard it may seem, keep your spirits up, for something wonderful awaits you. Count your blessings. Think of people who are in situations far worse than yours and far more helpless than you are. Look at the silver lining in your situation, there is always one. Be a good person and good things will never fail to happen to you. It is the law of the universe.

The sun'll come out

Tomorrow

Bet your bottom dollar

That tomorrow

There'll be sun!

Just thinkin' about

Tomorrow

Clears away the cobwebs,

And the sorrow

'Til there's none!

When I'm stuck a day

That's gray,

And lonely,

I just stick out my chin

And Grin,

And Say,

Oh

The sun'll come out

Tomorrow

So ya gotta hang on

'Til tomorrow

Come what may

Tomorrow!

Tomorrow!

I love ya

Tomorrow!

You're always

A day

Away!

Non-Fiitjeean Someone

" So, what are your preparations for studies after Class XII ?", my classmate asked me on my first day at school as an eleventh grader."I am studying for the SAT," I replied, "I'll be giving it later this year. What about you?". "I've joined Fiitjee.",he said gravely."Fiitjee....what's that?", I asked puzzled.My classmate's jaw immediately went crashing to the ground.After he'd recovered from his initial shock, he politely explained to me what Fiitjee was and then looking at me curiously said,"It's quite famous actually."
Such was my ignorance about IIT and related exams two years ago ( I am aware that I've given you all a jaw-dropping shocker!) and it amazed everyone to no end ( and perhaps rightly so)that I knew so little about them." I've made up my mind that I'm going to apply to universities abroad.", I'd explain.But people shot back dubious and occassionally injured looks at me. " Education in India is equally good.",some'd say while others would lecture me on how brain-drain was adversely affecting our economy.And so I quietly continued on my foreign-application quest and discovered along the way that there were many others like me. But there was no escaping signs of the omni-present coaching institutes-classmates exchanging study 'packages', classmates desperately consulting each other for solving their doubts, people discussing their phase tests in the corridors and some even adeptly juggling questions from their packages and those that the teachers put forth as they sat in class.Ask some nerd buried deep in a book what she was doing and she'd say sighing"Oh, you won't understand...Fitjee stuff." Fitjee, VMC, Brilliant and others of their ilk were everywhere and I thought it incredible how they'd permeated their lives completely. It went as far as people teasing a Fiitjee couple in class on how their idea of the height of romance would probably be studying a 'package' together!!
And thus for the better part of my high school days I continued feeling as if I were sticking out like a sore thumb in my class. But now as the start of my term at college in the US draws near, I've taken on a different perspective on the matter.I feel like I'm one amongst the 'chosen few' who are fortunate enough to gain an international exposure at such a young age. I am grateful to be able to go to a foreign land, meet new people, soak in their way of life and imbibe the best of two cultures - foreign as well as my own. And while I feel terrible about the fact that I shall be leaving all things that are so dear to me behind, the thought of exploring and discovering new avenues is exhilirating. Just the other day as I chatted with a classmate, I realized that my departure date would be sometime in the vicinity of my birthday. " It'll be awful being away from family on your birthday, won't it?", she exclaimed. " Yeah, it definetely will be. But I see it this way...it'll signify a rebirth, a beginning to a whole new life, a fresh start....", I replied. And a rebirth it indeed will be.

P.S- For those not in the know, Fiitjee, VMC and Brilliant are institutes that coach students for the entrance exam to the venerable Indian Institute of Technology.

Maiden Speak

When I was in middle-school, I went through a massive 'Anne Frank craze'. Virtually all my acquaintances posessed a copy of 'The Diary of a Young Girl' and before I knew it they all had started writing their own diaries, probably in the hope of it becoming a best-seller one day! I started writing one too, with no such grand expectations ofcourse, but for the sheer joy of putting my thoughts on paper. And for a long time, even much after blogging was possible, I continued clinging on to the belief that the experience of writing using pen and paper were unparalelled. ( Technophiles are probably going to wince when they read the aforementioned statement.) Well, I no longer feel that way, but see my entry into bloggosphere as an evolution into a new media of expression. This is my first entry and like most Hindus, hoped to kick-start the occassion on an auspicious day ( not that I'm deeply religious...but this sure is a big day), but soon found my patience wearing thin...just couldn't wait for the next brightly coloured day on the calendar.
So let me give you an introduction to myself. I am a seventeen-year old girl from New Delhi, India. I just passed out of high school and am now all set to make my foray into college life at Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA. Though there are a good 3 months to go before classes begin, I'm eagerly looking forward to starting off.
So until I write again...goodbye.