I am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced

Mr. Visveswara Bhat’s article Noorentu Maatu in Vijaya Karnataka Kannada daily is one which I do not miss. All the articles are inspiring. It could be about Shubhashini Mistry, a series of articles on Richard Branson’s life and many more. At the end the article inspires me and also teaches what life is all about. Hats off to you Sir. Continue the good work.  And please do not write about politics. J

Let me come to his recent article I am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced. Let me begin the translation of his Kannada article to English :)

Nujood, a ten year old girl stormed a court and started demanding for meeting the judge at any cost. Anybody seeing her could easily realize that the girl was in big trouble. The lawyers present took her to the judge. The judge asked “What do you want?” Nujood replied “DIVORCE”.  The whole court stood shocked. 

Judge: “What? Divorce?”

Nujood shook her head and said: “ I married 3 years ago. Am studying in 4^th standard. I do not want this marriage. I need divorce”

Nujood’s background

Nujood was born to Ali Muhammad in a place called Saana (Yemen). Her dad was a rogue who drunk daily. He had married Shoya (Shoya was 14 years then). 4 years later he married another girl. Shoya gave birth to 16 kids in 18 years One of them was Nujood. Ali forced his kids to go for job at a young age. He lived with the income which his kids generated. He never allowed them to go to school. When two of his daughters were kidnapped he didn’t even bother to search for them. His two wives were mute spectators.

Nujood was a different girl. She somehow managed to go to school without father’s knowledge. One day father got to know this. Nujood was fortunate that father didn’t kill her on knowing this. He decided to get her married to Fayaz Ali who was 30. Nujood was 10 then.

Yemenian law allows a girl to get married once she attains 9 years but doesn’t permit sexual relationship until the girl reaches puberty.  

As expected life at Fayaz’s house was horrendous. She was sexually abused and exploited countless times. She had to undergo torture from her husband and in-laws. Nujood went into depression. She feared her husband’s sight. Every day was a nightmare for Nujood.

Nujood once on her visit to her house, sought help from her mother and step-mother. They did console her but were helpless. Father threatened her of dire consequences and asked her to go back to husband’s house. Looking at the burnt wounds and the state of Nujood, Step-mother suggested her to come back. But she couldn’t do that as her father will never let that happen.

Finally Nujood arrived at a decision. She decided not to go to her husband’s house. Husband came to take her. She refused. He used force to take her but she stood firm. At the end she landed at the court looking for justice.

Shaada Nazir, a lawyer took up Nujood’s case. The court hearing began. The judge asked Nujood to go back to her husband and assured that she won’t be sexually exploited until she matures. But she refused. All she wanted was Divorce. Finally the court on April 15^th, 2008 gave her divorce after three months of hearing.

The aftermath

Nujood’s story shook the entire world. She had become a topic for discussion. When asked about her future plans she conveyed that she wanted to become a lawyer and take care of her parents. The law of Yemen which permitted girls to marry after 9 years was severely criticized worldwide. In Feb 2009, the Yemen government was forced to change marriage laws. Both girl and boy had to attain 17 years to get married now.

The courage which Nujood showed won her many accolades including the Woman of the Year award conferred by Glamour magazine (US) in 2008. She won praise from Hillary Clinton, Condelezza Rice and many more. Money flew in from different countries for her education.

The Present

Nujood wrote her autobiography. With the money she got from the book, she has built an apartment for her parents and taking care of education of her sisters and brothers.

She proudly goes to school daily :)   

No doubt there are many such Nujood struggling in many countries. She is a hope for others.We all have problems of some kind or the other.  But probably not greater than the problem that Nujood faced.

Whatever be the problem let us face it head on and work out a solution. Every problem has a solution. Instead of exaggerating our problem we should focus on how to overcome it.

Nujood’s story is truly inspiring. Thanks Mr. Visvesvara Bhat. Keep churning out such stories. :)

Story of Appreciation

This is an internet forward which i received from my friend Naveen Bhat. Carries a nice message on many simple aspects of life which we often don't give importance to.

One young academically excellent person went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the first interview, the director did the last interview, made the last decision.

The director discovered from the CV that the youth's academic achievements were excellent all the way, from the secondary school until the postgraduate research, never had a year when he did not score.

The director asked, "Did you obtain any scholarships in school?" the youth answered "none".  The director asked, " Was it your father who paid for your school fees?" The youth answered, "My father passed away when I was one year old, it was my mother who paid for my school fees.

The director asked, " Where did your mother work?" The youth answered, "My mother worked as clothes cleaner. The director requested the youth to show his hands. The youth showed a pair of hands that were smooth and perfect.

The director asked, " Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?" The youth answered, "Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books. Furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me.

The director said, "I have a request. When you go back today, go and clean your mother's hands, and then see me tomorrow morning.

The youth felt that his chance of landing the job was high. When he went back, he happily requested his mother to let him clean her hands. His mother felt strange, happy but with mixed feelings, she showed her hands to the kid.

The youth cleaned his mother's hands slowly. His tear fell as he did that. It was the first time he noticed that his mother's hands were so wrinkled, and there were so many bruises in her hands. Some bruises were so painful that his mother shivered when they were cleaned with water.

This was the first time the youth realized that it was this pair of hands that washed the clothes everyday to enable him to pay the school fee. The bruises in the mother's hands were the price that the mother had to pay for his graduation, academic excellence and his future.

After finishing the cleaning of his mother hands, the youth quietly washed all the remaining clothes for his mother. That night, mother and son talked for a very long time.

Next morning, the youth went to the director's office. The Director noticed the tears in the youth's eyes, asked: " Can you tell me what have you done and learned yesterday in your house?"

The youth answered, " I cleaned my mother's hand, and also finished cleaning all the remaining clothes'

The Director asked, " please tell me your feelings."

The youth said, Number 1, I know now what is appreciation. Without my mother, there would not the successful me today. Number 2, by working together and helping my mother, only  now I realize how difficult and tough it is to get something done. Number 3, I have come to appreciate the importance and value of family relationship.

The director said, " This is what I am looking for to be my manager. I want to recruit a person who can appreciate the help of others, a person who knows the sufferings of others to get things done, and a person who would not put money as his only goal in life. You are hired."

A child, who has been protected and habitually given whatever he wanted, would develop "entitlement mentality" and would always put himself first. He would be ignorant of his parent's efforts. When he starts work, he assumes that every person must listen to him, and when he becomes a manager, he would never know the sufferings of his employees and would always blame others. For this kind of people, who may be good academically, may be successful for a while, but eventually would not feel sense of achievement. He will grumble and be full of hatred and fight for more. If we are this kind of protective parents, are we really showing love or are we destroying the kid instead?*

You can let your kid live in a big house, eat a good meal, learn piano, watch a big screen TV. But when you are cutting grass, please let them experience it. After a meal, let them wash their plates and bowls together with their brothers and sisters. It is not because you do not have money to hire a maid, but it is because you want to love them in a right way. You want them to understand, no matter how rich their parents are, one day their hair will grow gray, same as the mother of that young person. The most important thing is your kid learns how to appreciate the effort and experience the difficulty and learns the ability to work with others to get things done.

Narayanan Krishnan - one of the CNN Heroes 2010

I got a mail from my friend Kiran requesting me to vote for Narayanan Krishnan who is one among the CNN Heroes 2010. Decided to find out more information about this gentleman and was amazed to know.

Following is the the interview which he gave for CNN. Take time to read and also vote for him at http://heroes.cnn.com/vote.aspx. If Krishnan wins he will get $100,000 in addition to the $25,000 that he gets for being shortlisted for the Top 10. Akshaya Trust needs all the monetary support it can get to build on Krishnan's dream. Let's help him get there.

Narayanan Krishnan was a bright, young, award-winning chef with a five-star hotel group, short-listed for an elite job in Switzerland. But a quick family visit home before heading to Europe changed everything.


"I saw a very old man eating his own human waste for food," Krishnan said. "It really hurt me so much. I was literally shocked for a second. After that, I started feeding that man and decided this is what I should do the rest of my lifetime."

Krishnan was visiting a temple in the south Indian city of Madurai in 2002 when he saw the man under a bridge. Haunted by the image, Krishnan quit his job within the week and returned home for good, convinced of his new destiny.

"That spark and that inspiration is a driving force still inside me as a flame -- to serve all the mentally ill destitutes and people who cannot take care of themselves," Krishnan said.

Krishnan founded his nonprofit Akshaya Trust in 2003. Now 29, he has served more than 1.2 million meals -- breakfast, lunch and dinner -- to India's homeless and destitute, mostly elderly people abandoned by their families and often abused. "Because of the poverty India faces, so many mentally ill people have been ... left uncared [for] on the roadside of the city," he said.

Krishnan's day begins at 4 a.m. He and his team cover nearly 125 miles in a donated van, routinely working in temperatures topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit. He seeks out the homeless under bridges and in the nooks and crannies between the city's temples. The hot meals he delivers are simple, tasty vegetarian fare he personally prepares, packs and often hand-feeds to nearly 400 clients each day.

Krishnan carries a comb, scissors and razor and is trained in eight haircut styles that, along with a fresh shave, provide extra dignity to those he serves. He says many of the homeless seldom know their names or origins, and none has the capacity to beg, ask for help or offer thanks. They may be paranoid and hostile because of their conditions, but Krishnan says this only steadies his resolve to offer help.

"The panic, suffering of the human hunger is the driving force of me and my team members of Akshaya," he said. "I get this energy from the people. The food which I cook ... the enjoyment which they get is the energy. I see the soul. I want to save my people."

The group's operations cost about $327 a day (approx 14500Rs per day), but sponsored donations only cover 22 days a month. Krishnan subsidizes the shortfall with $88 he receives in monthly rent from a home his grandfather gave him. Krishnan sleeps in Akshaya's modest kitchen with his few co-workers. Since investing his entire savings of $2,500 in 2002, he has taken no salary and subsists with the help of his once-unsupportive parents.

"They had a lot of pain because they had spent a lot on my education," he said. "I asked my mother, 'Please come with me, see what I am doing.' After coming back home, my mother said, 'You feed all those people, the rest of the lifetime I am there, I will feed you.' I'm living for Akshaya. My parents are taking care of me."
For lack of funding, the organization has been forced to halt construction on Akshaya Home, Krishnan's vision of a dormitory where he can provide shelter for the people he helps. Despite the demands and few comforts his lifestyle affords, Krishnan says he's enjoying his life.

"Now I am feeling so comfortable and so happy," he says. "I have a passion, I enjoy my work. I want to live with my people."

If you want to contribute to his noble cause, visit http://www.akshayatrust.org/