As usual I started looking around for some stories on the streets, or some fights or some college couples holding hands and talking in the street corner, but since it was around 5 o clock, there was nothing of this sort; street was calm with only few wanderers. But finally I wasn’t disappointed, I found two Girls aged around 16-18, right in front of me walking the same path. By their attire and speech I could understand they both were working as house maids. Now I decided to stay behind them and listen to what they talk about, Thus went their conversation.
Girl 1: “Hey what is this? I see lot of burns on your hand?”
Girl 2: “Hmmm as usual my father’s gift” with this she continued her stories…
“I went home late after lot of work yesterday and as its not salary day I dint have any money with me so he thrashed me badly and asked me to give money for him to drink, I said no I dint have any so he burnt my hand beat my mom and went away, not sure where is he I am searching for him past 2 days he hasn’t come home”
I was almost scared and was shivering at this story just then the other girl started…
Girl 1: “ oh That’s the story!!! My mom as soon as I go home snatches all the money and any food if some one has given me and keeps it aside for my father, though he may come home drunk throw the food at us and sleep without eating but surely after beating both of us. Yesterday was so bad that my father had come home heavily drunk and me for my misfortune was reading some book given by the aunty for whom I work. He kicked me for reading and not working to get money and asked me to give money I told I dint have any he threw me out of home asked me to do anything or even be a prostitute but to get money in the evening. In the evening I went to temple instead of begging there first time I prayed god and asked him why am I living in hell?”
That’s all; I couldn’t hear anything more as our paths Split into two different ways. The very last sentence of that girl left me so much touched and shocked. But something was lingering in my mind about the last sentence “living in hell…” I kept thinking about it and reached home to see my dad very happy to receive me and my mom so excited and went to kitchen to prepare coffee and snacks for me. Something I remembered went straight up to my room searched a lot and found my personal journal which I maintained in my college days and flipped the pages to one page and it read…
Jan-8th-2004
“Jeeva, I am so much sad today why everything is so wrong with me? Nothing seems to go good for me. Today when I started to college I had asked amma not to pack lunch as it is so much out of fashion to carry lunch bag to engineering college but she does it again and when I say I don’t want she cribs about it early morning my day was spoilt, after college I come back home my father asks me about my future plan and suggest me to plan for higher studies oh come on jeeva, I don’t want to study more why do they want to force up on me? Forget all this do you know what appa did today, I came home at around 7 in the evening with one of my friend he dropped me and left immediately. Seeing this appa started advising me to come home early and not to be so lenient with boys. What is this how can he think so cheap? Can I not have friends who are boys? I am really really sad about it I am thinking why I am living in this hell!!!!
Closing that personal Journey I wept silently went down and hugged my parents and prayed god silently for forgiveness saying “Dear god now I know what is living in hell”
