"Your mom's a dyke,isn't she?"

I was just walking down the hallway in the morning, making my way to my art class when I noticed a few people staring and pointing at me. I let it go, I was a little sleep deprived, and I thought maybe I was seeing things.

The stares got to get worse I realized. I could hear whispers, but what had I done? I didn't remember doing anything that could cause all of that! I averted my gaze and walked to my next class looking solely at the floor. I had already checked for any marks on my face or anything physically wrong, but I had come up with nothing .. I just wanted to go home. I felt insecure.. And vulnerable. So very vulnerable. As the teacher began to tell us about the evolution of language, a crumpled ball fell on my desk. I couldn't figure out who threw it at me, I opened it anyway.

"Your mom's a dyke, isn't she?" it read. 

I stared at the piece of paper, lost for words. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think .. I could hear my blood rush in my head but all I could do was stare at that sentence..

My mother had just recently come out and was currently in a relationship with this gorgeous female friend of hers.

How'd I feel about it? Really, I was happy.

That's not to say my mom and dad were horribly rude with each other or anything, but he'd left us almost a decade ago. And I could see how happy my mom was,now. Sure, it was a LOT to take in, but I was happy for my mom.  I struggled to find a way to answer this note. It hit upon me that even if I ignored this one, there'd always be others. We lived in a small town, we didn't really have a lot of drama going on. So this was bound to be the 'it' news on the grapevine for long. I, I didn't even know what I wanted to say..

The bell rang and I ran to the washroom and locked myself in a cubicle. My palms were sweaty and I felt like throwing up. 

Finally, a quarter of an hour later, I made my way out. Only to be blocked by some people I didn't expect.

They were sniggering and I knew what this was about. I mumbled an excuse trying to get past them. In vain.

"Maybe all your mom needs is a man to please her. And she'll forget this bullshit dyke shit. I've seen your mom, she looks so good, damn, I'd totally hit that" Jake said, hi-fiving his friend John.

His crass words were like knives. Is this what they thought of my mom? Is this what everyone wanted to say? I felt warm salty tears wet my cheeks before I even realized I was crying. I stood there for twenty minutes while they said worse things about their anatomy and how exactly would they convince mom to become straight. I gasped at some of the things they said, but I wanted it to get over. I wanted to go home. I just wanted to get the hell out of school and cry in my room....

"At school I would get people coming up to me and saying, your mum's gay. And I was like - it started to get to me because I realised then it wasn't normal, it was different. I sort of felt picked on and the amount of times I went to see the teachers and they said, just ignore them, they'll get bored. They never did get bored."  [Source]

Whether or not you are a supporter of the LGBTQ community, it is your responsibility as a human being to not only try and be as accepting of people as you can but also raise your children well. 

You may not believe or advocate Queer Pride, but what makes you special enough to bully or abuse someone who is? WHO ARE YOU? Just because heterosexuals are in majority doesn't make it right for you to trouble and ruin the lives of others.

Did you know that LGBTQ youth has the highest suicide rates, comparatively? This is generally always linked to homophobic attitudes and bullying. 

About 34,000 youth die every year making it the 3rd leading cause of death among LGBT individuals whose age ranges from 15 to 24. And this is still not the actual report since a lot of individuals do not come out.

According to a study in Taiwan, 1 in 5, or 20% of Taiwanese gay have attempted suicide.

Bullying isn't just physical. It could be sexual, verbal, emotional or cyber bullying. This has lead to the creation of projects such as :

• The Trevor Project
• It Gets Better

The 'It Gets Better' pledge goes as follows :
" Everyone deserves to be respected for who they are. I pledge to spread this message to my friends, family and neighbors. I'll speak up against hate and intolerance whenever I see it, at school and at work. I'll provide hope for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other bullied teens by letting them know that it gets better."
I took the pledge.. Have you?

Some of the NGOs in India that do amazing work and function as gay/lesbian support groups can be found here, some queer support groups can be found here. 

This is a list of helplines.

The Humsafar Trust has been working for the LGBTQ community since 1994 with their various projects spanning health care, support, project management, community work, counseling, etc.

'Labians' = Lesbians and Bisexuals in Action is an autonomous and non funded, queer feminist collective of lesbian, bisexual and transgender women since 1995. They can be mailed at : streesangam@gmail.com , and their helpline 09833278171 is open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays from 5pm-8pm.

(This post was written for the iDiya contest hosted by Indiblogger)

Blog about any social cause you are passionate about, and its potential solution. If there are any inspiring people or organizations working towards solving it, blog about them as well. INR 30000 goes towards an NGO of your choosing!

Disclaimer : The post is liberal dramatization based on a quote of actual events. It is a work of fiction.

Book Review #2 : 'The Bankster' by Ravi Subramanian

• Title : The Bankster
• Author : Ravi Subramanian
• Genre : Thriller
• Length : 358 pages

~ Summary ~

In  Angola, a covert CIA agent is about to exchange weapons for blood diamonds.

In Kerala, an elderly man will do whatever it takes to fulfill a promise made to a dying son.

In Mumbai, an international bank is stunned by the mysterious deaths of its key employees.

It begins in Angola, as a man exchanges weapons for the infamous blood diamonds of Africa.

In Kerala, the head of a family is accused of a crime he says he didn't commit.

And in Mumbai, the GB2 Bank are losing their key employees in a row ..

~  Excerpt ~

"Why blame him? You are allowing yourself to be used. While I have nothing against the protest and I am with you in this cause, you got carried away by the fact that this was making you famous in your neighborhood. "

~  My Review ~

This is one of those books that you just CAN NOT put down once you start reading it!

There are three parallel plots running together, as you read each chapter, your mind darts from here to there and back again. It is a legit page turner, which keeps you hooked.

The background is banking but the author here, manages to not use terms which would completely confuse and put a reader off. All the banking terms used are explained, and not in dumbed down, just-so-you-understand-way.

Along the story, you feel bad about Arvind and Laila, and more so, with Arvind's father Krishna.
You realize how cosmetic appearances go a LONG way, and not always for the good. You read about the insecurity and I could actually see it playing in my head as Harshita started to fall apart. I almost wanted to claw Z's face. (in a non psychopath way though.maybe)

Wherever you go, from banks to corporate offices, there always are these basic problems that arise, and they will continue to arise, because yes, we have computers, and yes, we have brilliant advanced technology, but a human operates them at the end of the day.
Greed, lust, thirst for power, jealously, betrayal .. These are but basic human emotions!

When I read the withdrawal email (page 128) , I felt so bad for him.
It reminded me of those times when I was forced to apologize, when you're not really at fault, but you just HAVE to, and it is embarrassing and humiliating, but one's gotta do what one's gotta do eh?

There are moments when you are insulted, and then there are moments when you are just numb as you realize all you ever were, is a pawn. You try and plan this mega move, but you fail, miserably, and the way the author has depicted all of this, including the wife's dialogues as she tries to console and talk to her husband, I found it very realistic and beautiful.

One of the parts I liked the best, were related to the post mortem and the tides thing. It was right there in front of everyone, but they couldn't guess it. It was very probable, and it reminded me of Hermione in DH as she said that she wasn't super intelligent, just really precise and perspective.

Not for a moment during reading of the book can you guess the ending, as i starts falling apart piece by piece, I went all, "Really?! I never would have guessed that!"
Quite honestly, the culprits were a shock to me! One of them, I detested since the start, but the way they conducted it, it was quite an interesting read!
The best part about this book is that it isn't drab for a moment, there are so many things happening simultaneously that will scream for your attention.

~ Final Verdict ~

4/5

It is an exceptionally well woven book, and if you haven't read this book, DO IT NOW!
Because once you start reading this book, these 358 pages will literally fly by!

:D Collectible :D

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

Pretty cute,no?

Wish you all a kickass weekend!

X

New Beginnings! (A Short Story)

" .. But I can't!" she ended, looking away.

"You can.. Of course you can! You know I love you, always have, always will. Just this once, forget what your mind is trying to tell you. Please, I'm begging you, begging you for one chance .."

She was hurt. And betrayed. And lost.

It took her months to begin to accept that it really was over .. Why would she want to go down the same path? Isn't it said that once you repeat it, it's no longer a mistake, it is stupidity.

"What about Perth? The cat you promised you'd get me? What about our engagement? Why?" she'd shouted that night, her mind refusing to believe he would desert her just like that.

"I know what you're thinking.. I am not him Beth, you know me!" he said, trying to convince her.

"I thought I knew him too..." she trailed off.

* 2 days later*

"You're my friend. And because of you, actually make that, thanks to you, I could survive what happened. You're why I didn't give up, you're why I threw away physically, and mentally, everything that I'd been carrying all these years. 

You're the reason I want to be new. More. Better.

And hey, I say, let's give it a try!" she messaged him.

To New Beginnings! :]

Winnie The Pooh's Story.

Remember the yellow/golden cuddly bear on TV named Winnie? Do you know that it was inspired from a REAL bear? No? Well, read on! =)

'En route to a training camp in Quebec during World War I, Canadian army lieutenant Harry Colebourn bought a bear cub for $20 from a hunter in White River, Ontario.

He named her Winnipeg, after his hometown, and smuggled her to England, where “Winnie” became the mascot of his militia regiment.

Eventually he donated her to the London Zoo, where she became a great favorite of Christopher Robin Milne, the son of a local playwright.'

And we all know what happens next!

Have a brilliant week! Stay safe

Maira.

" .. And that was the end of my hair problems!" Maira ended, which was followed by great exclamations, encouraging whoops and applause.

She exited the stage and happened to bump into a fairly good looking young woman. 

"Maira?"

"It's m'am to you" came the quick reply from somewhere in the crowd surrounding this famous beauty.

"Wait, have I seen you somewhere?" Niki asked Maira.

"Figure it our yourself Miss Bully" she muttered under her breath and left.

Niki was bewildered for quite some time .. Firstly she was late and she missed the chance of interviewing Miss Universe 2012 Maira, she was sure to get it tomorrow at the office. But that, strangely enough, wasn't what was nagging at her mind.. 'What did she mean by that sentence? Bully? What's she talking about?' Niki thought, as she got out of the lift, walking towards her house.

She entered to see her roommate stretched on the couch, watching television. The channel was broadcasting Maira's interview/press conference.

" .. and hey, I didn't get here unscathed. I was bullied. In school, oh yeah, don't gasp or look at me like that, I was bullied. But I wasn't all that fat, or ugly, and I wasn't hit, well then what happened? Let me tell y'all.

I was the only girl in my class who never did anything to my hair. I had pretty decent black locks which went down my lower back, which I always kept braided or tied up in a ponytail whenever I left home.

My parents were pretty conservative, not the type to keep me in the dark about boys and growing up and everything, but I wasn't raised up in a surrounding that made me want to experiment and color my hair. Among all the straightening, curling, bonding, streaking and dyeing, my hair was always the constant. Now a lot of girls kept getting mad at me because the teachers would always reprimand them, but since there was no such rule that said we couldn't do whatever we wanted with our hair, they could do nothing but lecture the class. The teachers would often take my name as an example, but hey, I wasn't some teacher's pet or anything. Far from it" Maira said, and giggled, her endearing dimples on display.

"I went to parties, I played basketball, I studied too, but was pretty average. The girls in my class would put chits into my bag calling me names, they would prank call at my house at times too.

So this goes out to every girl who oils her hair because she's not scared of being branded a behen-ji or boring. To that girl who doesn't fall prey to whatever the current hair fashion is. To that girl who ties her hair up simply. To every girl out there watching, who has being laughed upon because of her plaited hair, I survived it, and came out strong. And so shall you!" Maira stated, the audience captivated by her story.

" That was then and now? Well I am here, in a press conference midst hundreds of people, and forget what those girls do for a living, I have almost forgotten their names and faces even! Life is hard. But the fruits of labor, of having dealed with crap people, it is worth it!" she concluded.

"Maira, what exactly do you do to maintain your hair?" a journalist asked.

By now, Niki was gaping at the screen, Maira was the girl she had bullied? This exotic looking beauty? She'd never realized how her actions could've affected someone. She removed the plug out of the socket and ran into her room.. She felt horrible. Her only solace was the thought that Maira deserved all of it. The hair, the beauty, the fame..

- THE END -

This an entry for the "... and that was the end of my hair problems!" contest by Dove on Indiblogger. This is their 'Hair Aware App' which not only checks how much you know about your hair, but also suggests the Dove shampoo&conditioner range best suited for your use.