STORYMIRROR

Aura Bhattacharjee

Drama Inspirational

5.0  

Aura Bhattacharjee

Drama Inspirational

Super Women

Super Women

4 mins
16.6K


My mother’s day used to begin early. Since I went to morning school, she would wake up at dawn to quickly prepare my breakfast, before getting busy in her household chores. Sending me off to school, she would work with my aunt, grandmother and younger-grandmother ( Dad's aunt) to prepare meals for everyone in the family. Taking care of around ten members of a large family was a demanding task. However, despite that, in the evening , whenever she would have to go out….even if it was for visiting the nearby market to buy groceries…..she would always be tip top.

The back drop comprises of a very small, suburban town in Bengal, in the 90’s. Even wearing salwar kameez wasn’t yet in practice among the women of my mother’s age ( although girls of my generation would wear jeans, and these days even our mothers freely wear trousers in the same locality ). So, stepping out of house would mean wearing a saree for the ladies, back then. The ladies would usually , conveniently drape any saree that they found handy, to go out in the evening . But I always saw my mom take out a pressed, clean one and team it with matching blouse, with her hair neatly combed into a bun, whenever she stepped out.

“Oh my god…..how do you manage to stay so neat and tidy !” some neighbours would be so curious that they sounded tad bit like they were criticizing,” I’m too lazy to get so fresh just to go nearby …I can’t afford to take out nice sarees for this”

“Its for myself,” Mom had smiled and explained to me once while we were discussing the topic,” after a tiring day, when I look at myself in the mirror, I feel confident and energized if I see a decked up me. Be presentable for your own sake, always. It’ll uplift your own mood when you feel down.”

Today, a lady in late 20s in corporate world, I see absolute relevance and applicability of this advice that a housewife had once given in her own 20s. On multiple occasions, I’ve had compliments on my dressing sense. Before you jump to conclusions thinking I am being a narcissist…let me clarify, it’s NOT about my looks, I’m not saying men would flock around me because of what I wore. It was about the dress, or the way of wearing

the dress, and more often I have had these compliments come from women at different stages of their lives…..corporate managers, professor at Carnegie Mellon University ( she herself, by the way, had a great sense of power dressing, which I admired ..and then one day she pulled me aside and said she was in love with what I was wearing and the way I was wearing ! I felt like an achiever that day), female MBA batch mates (I won’t mention my engineering batch mates because with those girls I grew up wearing pyjamas and messily sharing pizzas in hostel rooms, like siblings). When it comes from women it means they feel inspired by me, by my presentability, way of carrying. I always make it a point to be dressed in my best attires ..even if it’s on a day when I’m going to stay in conference room almost whole day, alone, on calls or virtual meetings. Because, that’s what gives me confidence, that’s what, end of the day makes me look at myself in the mirror and help me get energised to gear up once again for battles.

My mom often used to rebuke me, asking me to walk straight. She would indicate that I would hunch a little, not consciously, as a result of carrying heavy school bag and during and studying most of the time. She also told me to walk with tummy, glutes and hamstrings pulled in. Back then I used to feel angry with her for so many instructions. Now, be it in my MBA class on mindfulness or at the gym and dance classes……..professors and trainers always ask us to do exactly the same! All this while, mom was unknowingly teaching me mindfulness. Being mindful of your gesture, posture and body language makes a lot of difference in your handling of day to day matters. My dance teacher tells that she practices pulling in all her muscles tight even when she is standing at the bus stop. Because that helps her maintain the much needed body strength.

Often, by the time we realise that all the scoldings of our mothers that used to anger us during adolescence, are actually the true necessities of life, it’s already late! So, henceforth, I pray every one reading this, to pay attention to mothers' scorns and work on them, while these super women are still around you.


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