The ‘THIRD GENDER’ The Daily Post

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Every morning I noticed her, in the same place, the same signal, the same traffic 

Between the loud horns and noise of vehicles people ignored her, they ignored her existence, her voice, her identity

She had her own self-respect and honour to earn in her own way.

People taunted her, laughed and jeered at her, made fun of her identity, heard her pleas yet acted like deaf ears. They saw her yet acted like blind and decided to ignore her

I stepped forward to know her.

I just rushed in and asked, “Why do you spread your hands before these selfish people?”

She replied in a weary tone with traces of anger, frustration and helpless undertone, “What do you expect me to do?”

“We are the way we are, it was not our choice to be born like this, we are also part of God’s creation and we have accepted ourself the way we are.”

“Even we people have wishes like normal people do!” “But how do we fulfill it?”

“Do you think your community will accept us like a normal human!?!”

“When our parents didn’t stand by us, then what should I expect from these strangers?” “And why?” 

“People think twice before giving any money to us, but have you ever thought how many times we think of our respect before asking money from strangers?”

“Just to fill our stomach we roam the streets behind people, to fulfill our wishes “

As she was talking I could see varying expressions across her weathered face…from anger and frustration, to despite to helplessness, from self-respect to being destitute… it was all written in a loud manner on her face… yet I wonder how we just bypass them so easily and continue on our way. It was as if she had got an opportunity to speak to the world… 

“They think we have a bad character, but they are the reason why we are like this!!” she continued.

“If they, the society, would have given us our rights and respect we would have been kind and would have lived a respectable life like you all in society today!”

“We are just rude to people on the face, we are just rude outside, we don’t mean any harm but we have no option but to be otherwise,” she continued in a self-defense. “Our hearts too have soft and caring corners,” she said as she looked at me imploringly…wishing for me to understand.

After talking to her and assimilating what she said, my mind laid in a mess in and then just as she had started, she turned back and continued her job for she had to earn a living

.…and I stood numbly there,overwhelmed….rooted to my spot looking at her and wondering “How come as a society we have failed her, and her brethren, the third gender so grossly?”

The Daily Post 

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/overwhelmed/

ROSHNI BORANA