Did you read about the grade nine student from the Indian state of Bihar who filed a written complaint against her father for forcing her to give up studies? Her compulsion to seek redressal for what she perceived as an act against her best interests made for heart-warming reading.
Fortunately for her, she had her mother on her side who accompanied her to the police station to file the complaint. To me, this is an act of bravery, for they will surely suffer the consequences of their actions at home.
The mother says she never had the opportunity to study and that is why she is determined that her daughter will get the chance to broaden her mind and horizon.
Currently, more than 63 million girls around the world are out of school. They face the challenges of gender preference — that is, sons being given the chance of an education first — as well as being forced to bow before societal pressures which, in many impoverished communities, dictate that a woman’s place is at home.
We all know that the mother is the lynchpin of the home. She is the person who passes on values and life lessons to her children. If she is educated, so much the better for the next generation as she will be able to make informed choices.
In the case mentioned above, the mother was fully aware of the importance of an education. In order to fund her daughter’s schooling, she started running a dairy. She says her husband tries to take away her earnings. Perhaps this is what pushed her to support her girl’s bid for an opportunity to study unhindered.
There are too many homes where the word of the man is law and he will brook no opposition. No one in the family dares disturb the peace for fear of repercussions. These might take the form of intimidation and threats or, worse still, physical violence.
How does one find the courage to speak out or act against such oppression? Is it a yearning for education so strong that one is willing to suffer for it? Or perhaps it is the awareness that there is something better out there — a world far beyond their dreams — that they have heard about and which seems almost unbelievable but attainable nevertheless.
Who sows the seeds of curiosity? It may be someone who has travelled beyond the narrow confines of a village or small town and seen the opportunities that are there for the taking. Fired with enthusiasm, this person might return to his modest home one day and see that he can make a difference. So, he tells his neighbours and friends about the endless possibilities and helps them set their sights higher than they had ever dared.
There are many stories of such unsung heroes who play it forward.
Many of them are not rich entrepreneurs but middle class people who, on a visit home, see the pitiful lack of basic amenities and then decide to do something to right the wrong. They start in a small way with whatever resources they have at hand and, eventually, the project grows as word spreads about the good being done and others join in, wanting to help as much as they can.
Maybe, some day, the grade 9 student will realise her dream and make something of her life. And, as she goes to achieve big things, she may realise that she, too, can make a difference in the lives of other girls like her. And she may just work towards making others’ dreams come true. Maybe, just maybe.
There is no end to possibilities once the gift of education is bestowed on those who can and want to make a difference.
