Category: Thoughts

I live in UAE. It’s 2019 and this year’s national theme is ‘Year of Tolerance’.

Nobody talked me into doing this mind you, but thinking about it, I genuinely feel like this is something that desperately needs to be addressed.

By definition it is; the ability or willingness to tolerate the existence of opinions or behaviour that one dislikes or disagrees with.

So I guess you could say the idea of tolerance is different for different people. For me, it’s all about extending the kind of respect to anyone’s opinion the way I’d want respect extended to me.

It’s a two way street that many of us refuse to acknowledge because we’re too busy judging someone for having an opinion vastly different from our own.

But like many- if not all- things, tolerance comes from love. Period.

The only reason why racism and all those other “-isms” exist is because someone somewhere a long time ago wasn’t loved enough to love the world the way it was made-flaws and all.

Love is kind. Love is pain.

Love is patient. Love is blind.

Love is pain. Love is hunger.

Love is tolerance.

“The darkest parts of you will leave stars behind.” – @kaddydee (Wattpad Author)

I. Would. Never. Want. To. Wake. Up.

I am a sixteen year old Indian girl.

I am NOT pretty to look at, my mother does not have the most stable health, I’m in my final year of high school, I question my life’s decisions everyday and I think I’ll never be happy.

Sure, my life’s problems aren’t all that big or important, and yes, these are problems that are mostly within my control. Keyword: mostly.

And yet, with all the dirt, lies and hurt, I’d never trade this life for a new one. Never.

There were moments in between that have made this life in particular so special to me, the thought of waking up with a new one makes me wish I simply stay asleep in the coma.

Not all of you would agree with me; but, the things I’ve learnt, the things I’ve seen and the things I’ve felt are far too profound for me to put in words clear enough to explain why I wouldn’t want to change my life even the slightest bit.

The people I’ve met are far too great, the people I’ve been friends with far too amazing and the people I’ve loved- far too painful for me to let go.

I’d probably inject myself with the world’s complete stock of anaesthesia again if it meant I’d go back to sleep and never wake up.

I remember wanting to sleep on my papa’s chest when I was young.

Sleep came easy knowing my Papa was there to protect me.

His steady heartbeat a lullaby to my anxious heart.

It was a time when nightmares plagued my mind as I slept, and my childish mind feared them.

Papa told me “If your nightmares can’t touch you, they can’t hurt you.“

Papa, I am sixteen years old now.

And my nightmares are coming true.

Papa, you told me my nightmares can’t hurt me as long as I remain untouched.

But Papa,

What if I’m not asleep?