THE STORY OF LAXMI AND ME!

"He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is the cemetery. ~Harold Wilson"

The words from the wise- wisely thought and wisely put! Life is all about change... If you don't change , you stagnate..you're left behind in this rat race and you are sure to go unnoticed, irrelevant and just another face in the crowd.

Had MAHATMA GANDHI not demanded a change in 1947, we would not have been independent..we would still be slaves. Had Bill Gates not innovated and developed Microsoft, Imagine where the world would be today. Had I not taken a step towards my self reliance, imagine where I would be today!

Every one has a story, sometimes shouted from the rooftops for the world to see, sometimes unheard and unwritten. Each one of us goes by a script in life, a rather interesting one if you reflect deeply.

I have witnessed some unsung heroes in my life. People who took things in their own hands to carve a niche for themselves.. people who decided to revolt and take a stand. And I was a part of that bold step that changed me and her forever!

Here's how I became a better person- a bolder me 14 years back!

 FLASHBACK 2001.

She was from a low class family. Our maid's daughter, destined to do what her mother had been doing all her life..Getting bread for the family..making kids against her will at night..a silent sufferer of poverty illiteracy and hopelessness. Her father used to come home drunk each night, subject her mother to physical and mental brutality and walk away with her hard earned money that she earned for her family. It is almost a story that every slum in our country would really identify with.

Laxmi was 10..third of the fleet of 7 kids that her mother bore in her 35 years of life. Her eldest was already married at 13. Imagine a life like that, makes me shudder. Laxmi wasn't like her siblings. She had dreams to fly, Break away from the poverty and the endless cycle of pain and regret that was being spun around her. I was always interested in her. She had a fascinating talent. She drew like a dream! Her art was beautiful and with some polishing, I knew that the girl would make a wonderful artist.

I wasn't too grown up myself but I went to school and I could she she was brimming with angst when she saw all the melancholy around her. A hopeless drunk father, hapless mum with the burden of seven kids..She wanted to change it all. And she did!
One day with some pushing from myself, Laxmi gathered the courage to complain in the Women's and Child welfare Cell, through me, online. I did my part. And she did the rest.
Once the cops and the NGO people arrived , she poured her heart out..

Her father was arrested, her sibling along with herself given the primary education and healthcare facilities. Her mum works at the organization itself now. All it took was COURAGE and willingness to change.

LAXMI was the hero. She is a budding artist today. She is literate and growing. She has managed to get a decent roof on her head, Thanks to https://housing.com/in ! She stays in PG hostel, meets like minded people..mingles like you and me.. She is almost as good as every other urban girl. Dreams in her eyes and visions set on the sky.

She stays in touch with me even now, Calls me to thank for that day that I just clicked!

I am her hero and she is mine. I am a stronger more independent person today, thanks to her story that weaved itself into mine. It was one time that made me the person that I am today. BOLD, INDEPENDENT AND FREE, like LAXMI! I learned to believe and hope and act.

All you need to do is, gather the strength to change, And change will embrace you!