Can I just be me?

One cold December night as I lay in my cozy bed, tucked up in my blanket, unable to fall asleep, I realized I'd been staring at the ceiling since a while. Deep in my thoughts, I decided to take a ride!

The thought of being invisible has always fascinated me and it still does. Although in my room, I lay in bed, I reached my frequently visited wonderland!

What would I do if I was granted the wish of being invisible for a night? My mind was bombarded with thoughts. The first thing I'd do was, go for a walk at the beach alone, sit on the white carpet of sand and feel the cool breeze touching my skin as I stare at the stars on that flawless black sky.

I wouldn't bother what clothes I wore and if my hair were perfectly fine, I would go places I am not allowed to go alone, do all the things I'm not expected to do and as new thoughts kept me engrossed, it struck me, 'why do I need to be invisible to do all these things?' But my mind murmured, 'I AM A GIRL'.

From the time of our birth, we are taught things like, ' Girls should not go out at night', 'Girls should not wear body-revealing clothes', 'Girls should not do this and that' and the list never ends. The question is WHY? ? ?

Many may say,  ' Because the world is not safe for girls. But I'd say, 'It's time to make the world safe and set the girls free from the chains of 'don't do's'.

In a world full of perpetrators, we still blame girls for the atrocities that the latter face. Can't we just focus on making the world a better place, a safe land rather than a wonderland in which girls like me travel in order to feel safe. In this world itself can't I just be me?