Part A
This is not a fashion article. It is not a complaint rant. It is not another cliched confession of a shopaholic either. This is the story of how I became an adult.
There is a Forever 21 outlet 5 minutes from my place in Ahmedabad. For those who do not know, Forever 21 is a fashion retail store, owned by the Aditya Birla Group. Ever since my childhood, it has been a ritual where every time my sister came home in her leaves, she would bring me a pair of clothes. Being choosy about my clothes no one was allowed to gift me clothes apart from her as it’s only her choice that I trust. She has introduced me to the kind of fashion I would not even have thought of trying. In more than one ways she has always forced me to broaden my perspective, move out of my comfort zone and try new things. She is the shield through which I had always viewed the outside world.
This has been the case up until the time when I got to reciprocate a tiny bit of what she has been giving me all her life. She had always complained about how she would make sure she bought something for me whenever she got back home and I had not done the same after I left home for further education. It was the day that I received my first salary that I decided that it was time for me to do something for my sister. I decided to gift a pair of clothes (a metaphor of how she had been taking care of me her entire life and now I was capable of protecting and taking care of her too). So I decided to shop from the place from where I have never returned empty handed. It was Forever 21.
As usual the place did not disappoint me and I returned expectantly, feeling a little nervous as it was the first time I was gifting her something. Thoughts like “will it fit properly?”, “Will she like
my choice” etc. I took the bag to her and held my breath. Her eyes watered and a faint smile appeared on her face as she held the dress I had bought for her and I had never felt more proud in my life before.
Part B
I have been blessed to be one of the very few privileged ones of the world. Life has been good to me in general, and where it has not, I have been blessed with just enough strength and support to overcome its challenges.
Being brought up in a small town, I have had a protective childhood where I did not venture even 5 km from home alone. In such a scenario when the time came for me to leave my town, family and friends for further studies, I was naturally terrified. Though the prospect of a new life was exciting, being so far from home, alone, was something that daunted me was for months before I was to leave. Though my family was very supportive, encouraging and standing by me in every decision, the day they left me in this new city, I wondered how I would survive.
As I got into the groove of everyday classes, made new friends, took up various tasks which I had never tried before and slowly, steadily my confidence started building up. I moved out of my comfort zone and discovered new things, places and people. I learned how to take up challenges and face my problems head on. Living independently, however harsh it may be, made me realize we have to leave our protective shell and take that step into the unknown to know who we really are.