Criticism...

Yesterday, I shared my feelings to my parents, that I like that girl from my maternal side and wish to marry with her. And you know what, everyone in my family starts criticizing me. 

My father said, "Have you gone mad? Don't you understand that she would be your sister in distant relationship? What would the society say? The people would laugh at us. Do you want the reputation of our family should be brought down to dust? Do you find any scarcity of girls in our community that you are thinking about her?"

My grandmother said, "Why are you giving so much importance to physical beauty? Does good nature, good character and culture means nothing to you?"

My elder brother and sister is criticising me and saying to not to go for that girl. My elder sister's husband is criticising me too. He even advised me to not to think about that girl and concentrate on my studies as I have to appear for UPSC this year. He told me to go to Delhi once again and do some coaching. When I told him that I don't need any coaching, and studying and preparing well from home itself, he scolded me and said, "Preparation of UPSC can not be done from home. You have to study 12 to 14 hours a day." Contrary to this, when I was an aspirant approximately two years ago, and was not selected anywhere, he told me once, "Don't dream too high. Do the government teaching job quietly which you will get after your teacher training course and concentrate on your family business. Civil services preparation demands hard work and devotion and I doubt your capacity." And now, he is suggesting me to go for civil services.

I was listening to all of my family members and their criticism. I think I gradually become indifferent towards them. Their advices, though valuable, seems  useless to me. No one is thinking about my wish, my feelings and my aspirations. Everyone is concerned about society. 'What the society would say?'

If they would come to me and ask me, "what I would say about them, about their society?" I will describe them in just a single sentence, "You all are crab in a tank!!" 

Jitendra Gupta