This month and particularly today, is the time to reflect on the incredible women surrounding us and all they’ve done and achieved in their respective zones. Millions and millions of stories of women who have gained a name either in journalism, politics, business, science and other fields are floating around on social media but this year, we should talk about those women who do not make it to the talk show circuit. In no way do I mean we shouldn’t celebrate the women who have a name in public, they inspire me each day but they receive enough applaud from everyone.
I want to dedicate this day to the women who encounter innumerous struggles each day to keep their households and job running smoothly, the women who challenge the status quo,, the women who stand up for each other and the women who never back down. We all have these women around us but we fail to notice. The woman sitting beside you In a metro, the woman doing your chores, the woman giving you a lecture in a class, the video of women you watch who unabashedly speak their mind, the woman writing your pay checks and most importantly the women reading this, You.
I witness inspiring stories of such women each day and its not important that I hear them all. Sometimes even watching a woman beat her own record in the office, to work relentlessly is inspiring. It makes me believe in the notion that ‘You can do anything’. This saying is a cliché but to my understanding cliches exist for a reason. Every time I go on my limb testing this very theory, I find a new version of myself. Only if we look around, we will be able to notice such stories.
One such story that inspires me is that of someone I know whose life took an unfavourable turn and she landed at the threshold of a standstill. With a blink of an eye, she went from having a happy family of 5 to only 2 of them surviving the accident. To a casual observer, her future looked bleak. But, within a span of 1 year she overturned the struggles and kickstarted her career at the age of 35, and is providing for her daughter’s education who wishes to pursue a career in public administration. Her daughter talks about equality for women and wishes to fight for equal pay for women in India. She continues to inspire many people around her with her story of bringing her life back on track but for me even more because she is raising an incredible future leader.
As much as we need to celebrate other women, we need to celebrate the evolved, carefree and peculiar version of ourselves as well. We often fail to recognise our stories. We continuously fail to give ourselves that due credit, that pat of applaud. We disregard the hardships we endure, the success we gain in our endeavours because of the perception of it not being notice worthy. But believe me, someone somewhere is feeling an impact of our actions, be it how little. Standing up for someone in the metro when somebody is being targeted over their choice of clothes or in cases of moral policing, looking out for someone in moments of crisis, boosting other women and cheering on them. We might not recognise the impact these actions have but it might leave someone in awe of you and boost courage to do the same who lacked to do it before.
Women supporting each other is the most nurturing and blissful view. Every year on the 8th of March on the occasion of International Women’s day, we commend and appreciate women all over the world for creating history in their respective fields. But we should remember, that doesn’t only include the big names that have got down in public platforms but includes each women across the globe, that includes, you and me.