I know you’re wondering about the life that we lived when we were your age and wanted to know how come we accepted that life you heard us talk about so often. You always asked “How could you live where people were harassing you while walking in the street?” and “How come you never voted although you had a voting card” and most amazingly “How could you sleep when you knew so many people very close to your house don’t find a blanket to cover them from the cold.” I heard all you said with a lot of patience and was always wondering how we had at any point accepted to live that way!

 

Yes my dear, we were brought up at times of fear. Everyone was afraid of something or afraid for something. We were afraid for our future, for our lives, for our safety, for our families, for our homes. We were so scared that we all decided to just stay silent and keep it all to ourselves in hope that this will keep us safe. People were harassing in the street and we could not speak because we were afraid we will be charged with seduction or misbehavior or some other type of charges. We were not allowed to choose our representatives in parliament because the best people were too scared to get nominated. Having only bad options to choose from, we preferred to stay silent and wait for better times.

 

As for suffering of people around, cold was not the worst they suffered! Many suffered diseases, didn’t have enough to eat, had no idea where to get their next meal. Many children were not allowed to go to school because they had to help out at home. We tried hard to help; giving money or support when possible. But we could only do so much, and the rest just had to be left undone. Don’t you imagine that it was easy living like that, but we also knew that we could not fight it all on our own, and I’m sorry to say, when the time of choice came, we thought about you and about ourselves and our families and put that first ahead of everything else. You may think of this today as harsh and unexplainable, but if it were not for this, you will not have had a chance to live this life and make these choices, and we would not have been honest to you and to ourselves.

 

But when the moment came for us to act, we were there … ready … our sleeves pulled …. our hearts prepared and our souls all toughened up. We were the first-liners; nothing could deter us anymore! Though it seemed for an instant that we had forgotten the screams of the poor and the agonies of the hungry, we had in fact never did! We were only helpless and afraid, yet when the right moment came, there was no more fear! We wanted a better world for you and for your cousins and friends and colleagues. Though we knew we lost our chances, we still believed if you got it then we’re good enough.

 

Many believed we were wasting our time and asked “Why risk your lives and what you have?” but we knew that we only have ONE CHANCE to make it all right again. We refused to listen to the hopeless and just accept things as they are, and I must also say: we became too ashamed of our silence when all that you are talking about was taking place. We raised our voice and here’s what it got us in the end and we’re very proud of it.

 

Yes, you don’t have the wonderful unique life that maybe others have! Maybe you’re missing an annual holiday in a fantastic expensive resort or a car with driver or a dedicated multi-lingual nanny. But what we hoped to have given you is the pride of this life with your head raised high.

 

Love from your many mothers and fathers

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