My Childhood Dream
Before I begin, let me share a bit about myself. I am a 31-year-old woman, the only child of my parents. Despite being their only daughter, I have always felt a deep lack of love and warmth from them. For the longest time, I felt lost, not knowing what purpose my life held.Growing up, my childhood dream was simply to become a bride.
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Because of this, whenever I met a man, I would instantly imagine him as my future husband. I blindly wished for a wealthy, handsome partner, without looking at who they truly were. This mindset was deeply rooted in my upbringing.my family always told me that in our caste, marriage is the only ultimate goal for a woman. Consequently, they never focused on my education or encouraged me to build a career. As a result, my higher studies ended right after graduation. Yet, despite everything, the dream of becoming a bride grew stronger in my heart day by day.
The real struggle began after my graduation when my parents started looking for a groom. It was an endless cycle of hassle and disappointment. Sometimes there were heavy demands for dowry other times, families wouldn’t even let the boy and girl meet. Every single time, something went wrong, and the marriage proposals fell through.
Now I’m at 31, I am still unmarried, and my heart has turned to stone when it comes to boys and marriage. Looking around my neighborhood and at my own cousin sisters, my perspective has completely shattered. Some of them are already divorcees, while others are suffering from domestic violence and being beaten by their in-laws. Seeing their pain made me realize how flawed my family’s traditional thinking about marriage truly was.My childhood dream is now completely broken. As I sit down to write this story, I am constantly plagued by questions: Whose fault is this? Is it my parents' fault for conditioning me this way? Is it my own fault for having such a blind mindset? If only I had focused on my career, I would have had a stable job today. But my entire focus was on a dream that no longer exists. Today, looking at the miserable state of my cousins, I feel so detached that even if someone offered to marry me without asking for a single penny of dowry, I would refuse.What do you think about my journey? Whose fault do you think it is? Please let me know your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to clap and show your support if this story touched your heart.
