By Tarali Deka
Ever since, I had a question in mind:
Why am I treated
like the way I don’t like?
I kept searching for a reason,
tried to feel the colours of life,
but found even the rainbow looked dull.
Yes, I dreamed of the ocean —
to swim, to go far beyond.
But even the river wasn’t clear.
Still, I found peace sometimes,
when the moonlight touched my thoughts.
It calmed my restless mind.
Even when it rained,
a part of my happiness would slip away.
I kept searching for the answer —
in flowers, in nature, in quiet moments.
With closed eyes,
hands over my heart,
time kept moving:
days, weeks, months to years...
Then one simple day,
I heard birds chirping sweetly,
calling me to look at nature.
It was just after a storm.
The wind had broken her nest.
Yet the little bird kept singing
and had already started building again.
That moment taught me something.
Sometimes, we learn from the smallest beings.
The bird wasn’t tired,
even though she flew so far.
Her home was gone,
but her hope stayed strong.
Because she knew
she would build it again.
And that was the moment
that I understood.
Everything around me was still in place.
All I needed was a small spark —
to rise, to feel alive again.
Yes, the rainbow is still colourful.
Yes, I can be treated the way I want
once I realise
that every being is special.
In that moment, I realised:
Yes, the ocean is waiting,
and I too
can rise like a phoenix,
to follow my dreams,
to shape myself as I want to be,
and go beyond as I dream to go...