What society, even our loved ones think that a woman needs, and what a woman needs in reality, are completely different things. An evocative poem.
Father, don’t gift me a husband to secure my future Gift me education to secure my own future
Brother, don’t gift me your strength to save me from evils of world Gift me confidence to build my own strength and challenge them
Husband, don’t gift me an expensive dinner date Gift me a helping hand for everyday chores
Society, don’t gift me the definitions of a woman Gift me space and liberty to define my own self
Don’t just make me feel special for one day Let me make my life special everyday!
Image source: what a woman needs by Shutterstock.
Hailing from the foothills of Himalayas, Isha presently works in an advertising agency in Mumbai. A movie buff, book worm, wander lust, she just can't keep her inquisitive mind at bay. read more...
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Earlier my husband would say, 'Arey! What is there in making dal-roti? It's so simple.' After he had to cook everyday when I was ill, he has stopped saying that to me!
“Arey! What is there to do in making dal roti? Put a handful of lentils in the cooker and let it whistle and make two rotis. After all, how long will it take?” A handful of dal (lentils) and two rotis! This is the story of every woman and no one seems to understand.
Some time ago, after a shopping spree, my husband and I entered the house, exhausted. I had just about kept all the bags aside, when my husband said, “I am very hungry, can you make something.”
I looked at my husband in amazement and thought, ‘He had just had food, how did he get hungry again so soon?’
My husband, as if he had read my face, said, “Arey! You know that my stomach is not filled with outside food. Just make dal roti. What is there to do in making dal roti? Put a handful of lentils in the cooker and let it whistle and make two rotis. After all, how long will it take?”
‘Is this the way dal (lentils) and roti are made?’ The thought came to my mind. ‘After all, I also went along and now I am tired too.’ I was also getting angry at myself that after all, I had spoiled the habit of everyone in the house.
Nirmala disconnected, and turned to speak to Amma. But she was long gone. Once more, the poor kitchen utensils were bearing the brunt of Amma’s temper.
The Muse of the Month is a monthly writing contest organised by Women’s Web, bringing you original fiction inspired by women.
Ujwala Shenoy Karmarkar is one of the winners for the October 2021 Muse of the Month, and wins a Rs 750 Amazon voucher from Women’s Web. The juror for this month, Himanjali Sankar commented, “The age-old connection between a mother and daughter is explored poignantly through an exasperated love, which is often seemingly angry and impatient, that a daughter feels for her mother and the way she comes to make peace with it. A story set in Covid times that puts us in touch with the importance of love, connections and gratitude in a non-preachy, very real way.”
Nirmala grimaced as she picked up her cup of tea. It was cold and had a greasy film over it. Her class had lasted two hours, and she had been talking continuously for most of it. Her back was aching and her throat was sore.
What do the words strong woman mean to you? A surprising look at the concept that will blow away all your stereotypes.
“Strong women don’t cry and show their emotions, others can take advantage of your weakness”- Ever heard of these statements coming from people who think they know you the best?
This makes me wonder: how do you actually define a Strong Woman?
We have different notions in our mind about ‘strong‘ women, and we often find ourselves celebrating the strong and successful woman in all forums. What doesn’t get celebrated or acknowledged is the other aspect of being a strong woman.
Valentine’s Day need not doing what everyone else does! These thoughtful and personalised gifts will have your significant other feeling mighty pampered.
I love the month of February; after all, this is the month of celebrating love and friendship. To me, it’s even more special as I celebrate Valentine’s Day on Feb 14th – exactly a week before my wedding anniversary on Feb 21st.
I am blessed to have been married to my schoolmate who is now my soulmate, and we celebrate our sassy seventeenth wedding anniversary this year. And every year, especially around this time I reminisce about how my husband and I have evolved in our beautiful relationship – so have our feelings about celebrating Valentine’s.
During our courtship, V-Day was the day to bombard each other with compliments, gifts, hugs and roses, heavy-duty emotional greeting cards loaded with large doses of PDA (Public Display of Affection) and make all this look as cool as possible. There was also this subtle social pressure about who got the best gift from their Valentine and who the coolest V-Day couple was.