Faking…Freedom!

Mom, what is so special about today, it’s only a Saturday?

Is it not just a Saturday, it is 15^th of August today.

What happened on the 15^th of August, Mother?

We got our Independence because we were ruled by some other.

The tri-color flag flew up high,

And we achieved the dream, which made our martyrs die.

We became a nation of our own,

But, a part of us left, which was already torn.

Still, we decided to move ahead,

And pay homage to fighters who lay on the death bed.

We became world’s largest democracy,

We had the right to vote as we were no longer a bureaucracy.

We got the right to be free,

Mother India became a free place for people like you and me.

So, what is the meaning of freedom, Mom?

Is it that I can do whatever I want?

Is it what that guy did to Pujadi when she was in the park?

When he said bad words and teased her in the dark.

Is it what the auto driver wants when he refused to take Singh Uncle to the hospital?

When he said No, to a sick elder because he said giving extra fare would not be possible.

Is it what the school guard did to my friend Shreya the other day?

When he killed her innocence after he touched her that way.

Is it what feels like killing innocent people?

And what we see in the news over and over.

Tell me, Ma, if I got the meaning to freedom right,

Or is it just a holiday for all and we will lose it after this night?

Is it just a day for celebrations and feasts,

And, we will forget tomorrow and will be bothered the least.

Is it a day, when we just ‘choose’ to be free,

Else we are always chained in our lives or wherever it may be.

True freedom is more than just a day,

It will be when every person will know the ‘right’ way.

Freedom is to do whatever you want,

But, NOT if it will hurt others and come back to haunt.

Someone just heard what the little boy said,

While his mother had not answers, before she tucked him to bed.

But, someone had the answer and eyes filled with tears, she whispered it to the little boy’s ears,

“You just think you are ‘free’, blindly ignoring the real stories”,

While, Mother India ‘sarcastically’ smiles, free from all worries.

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This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda.

 

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Image Courtesy: https://elisabersaniblog.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/freedom_by_whateverwinnie.jpg