Following my daily routine, standing on the door-step of local train travelling from home to office, I looked out at the green leaves that seemed becoming greener with the drops of rain. But a sound broke my contemplation:
‘Freedom’ !!!,”What do you wanna depict through your Tattoo ?” the man gasped in excitement probably in the exploration of true meaning behind that tattoo
I was bit surprised but gently replied: “It’s a way of showing my love for freedom.”
“Hmm !!! As I understand is it your way of showing your love for freedom by going through a painful art work ?” He was bit sarcastic
“Yes, it means a lot to me” replying in a high pitch & I turned my face towards outside hoping that he won’t eat my head any more as I was about to reach my destination and hoped to get down as soon as possible just to escape from the questions of that weird man. Within a few seconds the train stopped and I got down without looking back.
Nothing disturbed me the whole day except that few minutes conversation that turned the image of that nice man into weird one..!!!
Next day that incident vanished completely from my mind and as usual I was standing at the door step of train thinking about the time lapsed to reach office.
Suddenly I heard an annoying voice again, “Excuse me miss..!!” It was the same guy.
The moment I saw him I prepared myself for more irritating questions and politely answered “yes”.
“Nice to see you again; Actually I was thinking about you the whole night and one question tumbled in my mind, if you don’t mind, should i ask you..? ”
“Umm..!” (‘Please don’t ask’ I thought in my mind)..!
He continued, “What’s exactly ‘the freedom’ for you?”
“For me freedom is to live my life with my own rules, the way I chose to live i.e. no restriction no slavery..!”
He cunningly smiled & said “so you are one of them..Huh!”
“Yes of-course I’m living far away from my home alone in this city at my own earnings for my own livelihood just the way I want to live….Am I not? I interrupted his questioning with my assertion
“So you do not have any family pressure? Don’t they tell you what to do and what not to? Don’t they take regular updates of your whereabouts? Don’t they insist that you need not to do job until we are alive! Don’t they insist on asking when will you marry and to whom? It’s too late you should follow social norms made for a woman, bla bla…!”
I looked blank.
He continued “I think I hit a nerve with my comments about Liberty you have given by your loved ones or what you call as Freedom..!
I looked distressed as he touched a deep-rooted nerve. The wind, the public, the noise around seemed became inactive and it was like I have put into a vacuum.
Eventually the sound of the signal broke the vacuum down and I got down on the station completely in a dumb situation. Still I don’t know how and why I turned back and looked at that man.
He was smiling at me and seemed blessing by saying “I wish you will achieve your love, your freedom..!”
I kept staring… & the train went off creating a little voice inside me too .!
Ashmii
A beautiful story…
Sometimes, a question from a stranger gives us a chance to discover ourselves.
Very beutyful story
It felt so good to hear your story of Freedom. You have such an amazing gift for storytelling — the way you express your thoughts truly makes one pause and reflect.
Please keep writing and sharing more such beautiful blogs. In this fast-paced life, we often forget to slow down, look within, and spend some quiet time with our own inner voice. Sometimes, that little pause is all we need to rediscover peace, clarity, and a sense of freedom within ourselves.
Keep inspiring and sharing your beautiful thoughts.
Loved how an ordinary train ride quietly turned into a conversation with one’s own idea of freedom. That last moment stayed with me the train moved on, but the question didn’t.
Perhaps a caterpillar doesn’t become a butterfly by escaping the cocoon, but by becoming someone the cocoon can no longer contain. Maybe that’s what freedom really is—not simply breaking away from restrictions, but growing beyond the boundaries we once accepted as our world. Your story beautifully captures that moment when you begin to realise that the freedom you were looking for was not outside you; it was waiting to unfold within you. 🦋
Nice 👍
Nice 👍
So good story
Nice 👍👍