I remember the first time I held a pencil. It was a gift from my father—a man who saw the fire in my eyes and chose to nurture it. “Study, Saira,” he said, “so your wings can take you to places I could never reach.” In our village, educating a girl was as rare as rain in the desert, but he made it happen. His pride, his joy—his only daughter.
Now, at eighteen, that fire flickers, suffocated by whispered expectations. My father is gone, and with him, the protection of my dreams.
The Weight of Tradition and Society
The village speaks louder than the wind:
A girl’s worth is in her wedding veil,
Not in books that turn her pale.
Marry her off—she’s ripe, she’s ready.
A man’s home is where she’ll stay steady
My mother sits in silence, grief stitched tightly to her lips. I see her shoulders sag when relatives visit, their words like chains pulling her down. They speak of duty, honor, and preserving tradition. But no one speaks of my dreams, my ambitions, or the world beyond our village.
At night, I stare at the moon through the cracks in our thatched roof. It looks free, untethered. I wonder if it, too, feels pulled by unseen forces.
A Plea for Freedom
Oh stars, if you see my plight,
Do you not pity my silent fight?
I wish to soar, not be tied,
To live a life with nothing to hide.
Tomorrow, a family will come to see me. They will judge me like cattle—how I walk, how I speak, how I pour tea. They will not ask about the books I love or the poems I write in secret. They will not care about the equations I solve or the maps I dream of exploring.
“Why fight?” my cousin whispers. “This is how it’s always been.”
But I cannot accept that.
Morning arrives too quickly. I wear a borrowed dress, gold earrings that belong to my mother, and a smile that doesn’t reach my eyes. They come, they look, they approve. I am to be married in three weeks. That night, I write a poem on the back of a grocery list—a farewell to my dreams.
A Silent Goodbye
Goodbye, books, my trusted friends.
Our journey must come to an end.
Dreams of classrooms, lessons, and lore,
Will now be locked behind a door.
The wedding day arrives, and I sit silently as they adorn me with gold. My heart is heavy, but I know I am not alone in my pain. There are countless girls like me—in villages and cities—whose voices are silenced, whose dreams are folded away like fragile paper cranes.
The Fate of Many, The Hope for Change
This is the fate of countless souls,
Dreams buried beneath societal roles.
In villages quiet, in cities bright,
Girls like me lose their light.
But within us burns a steady flame,
A spark of hope that whispers our name.
One day, we’ll rise, and the world will see,
The strength in the hearts of girls like me.
I promise myself that maybe one day, when the world softens, my daughters will know a different truth—a life where wings are not clipped, where dreams are not caged. Until then, I will hold on to my fire, for that is something no one can take from me.

Empowering Girls Through Education and Equality
This story is a reflection of the struggles faced by millions of girls worldwide. Education is a right, not a privilege, and breaking the cycle of gender inequality begins with empowering young women. By advocating for girls’ education, gender equality, and social change, we can create a future where no girl has to say goodbye to her dreams.
Join the movement. Support girls’ education. Raise awareness. Because every girl deserves a future she chooses.