When your daughter gets molested, ask her not to shhhh...about it (poem)

When I was 14 and a stranger masked boy attacked me
and I came home and shared it with my mother,
I was told not to share it with anyone,
and unknowingly I became a victim.

Two years later around the same neighborhood,
one of my close friend got attacked,
and reached my home all shaken up,
and I felt guilty for being sh..

When I was 16 and an uncle in family touched me,
and I shared it with my sister and mother,
I was told to be normal yet careful,
and I began feeling helplessness.

I faced that uncle in family gatherings,
and welcomed him unwillingly to my home,
bearing his uncomfortable glances,
and I started accepting society.

Later, travelling in the local buses,
I got pinched by invisible hands,
followed by leching on streets,
and I stopped complaining.

Then, when I was 22, while doing Ph.D.,
I was periodically hugged very tightly,
which left me confused and uneasy,
but I could not tell him to stop.

In all these 8 years, I lost my childhood,
I felt all men need only one thing,
for blaming others and self-pity,
had made me spineless.

But, today, somehow I find courage to share my history,
with an intention that no other girl feels helpless,
no matter whatever pain she is experiencing,
due to a stranger, family or dear person.

***
Aum Tat Sat