Respect

I have a great deal of respect for certain people, there are two people in this world who I respect beyond everyone else, even though we do have our differences. These two people are my parents, it amazes me to see how far they have come from when they got married to where they are now, I am seriously in awe at all they have achieved, both in their private life and their professional achievements. They are the two people who remind me (even though they do not know it) that no matter how hard something is to do, there is always someone who is in a worse position than yourself and also that once you do this problematic "thing" you will realise that there is no limit to what you can do, and that from that point in, the sky is the limit.


Anyway, this isn't about them, this is about another person who I know and also love and respect greatly. I used to respect her beforehand but after what she has done recently, the respect I have for her has skyrocketed, she will never ever know how much I respect her for what she is doing and what a true fucking legend she is. To show the power of mind and body that she has shown in the adversity faced by her is truly amazing and I feel that lesser people would not be able to have done as she has done, I in fact know, that people faced with what she suffered from for 20 odd years would have just taken it like an idiot, but not her! This is why she commands so much respect from me, tis just a shame she will never know the high regards that I hold her in as words cannot express the respect I have for a person like her, what she has achieved in the past few months is a testament to women everywhere who think that they cannot rise up against the crap that they have to face on a daily basis because society will shun them. To those women I say FUCK SOCIETY, make yourself happy and only yourself, when the day of reckoning comes, you will be judged only on how YOU lived your life, not what society thought of you, why waste a lifetime doing what others want, waiting for the day to come when you can please yourself? You know that day will never come, life is truly for the living and live it for yourself and those you love. It doesn't matter if society thinks you're bringing shame on your family, who are they tell you what shame is and what shame is not? They aren't living back in India/Pakistan anymore, you move to a Western country and you integrate into the society. So, make yourself happy, if you are happy in your heart and those you love are happy, that is all that matters, if those around you (for whose opinions you do not care) do not like what you do, FUCK THEM. This is the single greatest problem within Indian/Pakistani families and cultures, you have to at all times think of the "honour" of the family, thus you take the beatings and the crap that your husband's family throw at you because if you DARE rise up and say you aren't going to take it anymore, you are seen as a outsider.

I truly believe in power to the people and that you really DO need to fight for your right to par-tay. Why should you live in fear of being beaten up because the "elders" think it is fine? There is reason that domestic abuse is a crime in this country, I know of instances where a husband has killed his wife whilst his parents sat around letting that happen, I would like to ask these elders one question, would you let your daughter take that kinda beating? NO, I didn't think so, so why is it OK for someone else's daughter to go through the same shit? One other thing I don't get about the old school Asian community at large, they look down on divorcees because they must have done something wrong. The prefer you to be married and getting beats and being unhappy, why is it acceptable for a husband to beat a woman infront of her children, yet it is not OK for the women to live alone and be safe? Those who judge people on face value should take a long hard look at themselves as it is people like them who legitimise women getting beatings, the women become too scared to leave because they are worried what society would say, to these women I say stand up for yourself, do what the superwoman mentioned above has done, break free from it! Society think it is fine to cast judgment on you, let them live ONE DAY in your life and they will soon change their minds.