This happened last thursday.I was waiting in cantonment for my train to madurai.Thus is the converse relationship between me and 6732 is that it always shows up a minimum of half n hr late whenever i show up on time. N on one day, when it was raining cat n dogs..i showed up 5 mins late and it was already hooting,ready to leave... hinting like a old love, not to take it for granted..Anyways, i wasn't for any surprises on that day, It kept its tradition intact n came a mere an hr n half late. I had finished my vikatan and was observing the ppl arnd me.There was an enunch standing in the shop nearby. I believed she was also waiting for the same train.
I had all possible mean thoughts hovering around me, ranging from wot she would have filled in the ticket application form , as it had only checkbox for male n female - to who the unfortunate soul wud be to sit next to him/her.
There my beloved 6932 came after a long wait and i have this bad habit of getting a hot choc before boarding..I do that invariably to alllow the uncles,aunties to fight it out first as though they r standing in the queue for a thirupathi laddoo..I boarded last and waited outside the bay allowing an uncle to scramble with his luggaes when i saw the enunch that i had seen in the platform seated in my bay.I almost spilled my hot choc on my shirt..Wot the helll???? I know that fate loves playing games with me..but not to this extent..Let me be honest here, there were pretty gals in the next bay and i didnt wanna be a laughing stock before them.So, i decided to jus deposit my bag and go for a stroll till pantry little knowing that there isnt one in my beloved 6732.
I was standing aside the train door...i love doing that during my train journeys..I get reminded of the long journeys to pilani,when i used to sit in door steps of the train n have a chat with manly.TN express used to be a long one with almost 20 coaches so, it was a nice sight to see it making its curves..Then it struck me that i had to go to my seat for checking my ticket with the TTR...n i was in no mood to show my face there, even if i had to spend the whole night in the doorstep...
Clock ticked by...I finally decided to get back to the bay..I could see the TTR coming at the far end..I saw that all the 6 people in the bay were uncomfortable with her around..There was a newly wed which kept making gestures...Another family which was irritated at the very sight of her.She who had a seat among the 6 seats in the bay was made to sit in the sideberth..n the seat opposite to her was left unoccupied. But she cared little, she was reading some book and seemed unaffected by the things going around her..
I was wondering what fault was hers to be singled out by the society...Was that her fault to be born an enunch ?? In a society which readily accepts people wearing masks,y didn't i accept a person with only a different physical disability..What took me so long??for a person like me who is supposed to be educated ,broad minded blah blah...i had no damn right to see the 6 people in the bay with crticizing eyes. What took me 15 mins to realize is taking them a life time..
I spoke to her......period.
Our conversation lasted only for a few mins...I was actually surprised i did it..People in the bay had more reasons now to make me take the side berth which i gladly accepted...
Life provides you with opportunities,its upto us to make it as a memorable experience.I had made up my mind to know more about enunchs when i stepped in madurai..There is never a dearth for books at my home..My father has a stock of his medicine books right from college.I still remember, becoming fond of geneteics in school---Mendel's thoery that i read it from my fathers books..
What follows now will be a bit technical..but that made me understand my sex better and respect enunchs more..I'll try to keep it in layman terms....When a baby evolves in mother's womb..It doesnt have a gender associated with it for first 6 weeks. It is just a baby..not a boy or gal..Now for a brief history about chromosomes.a Male has XY chromosome and a Female XX. When a zygote is formed,it either has XX or XY but this doesn't necessarily decide the sex of the person.A baby after 6 weeks, has its hormones secreted. Male hormone is called androgen and female as estrogen.Surprisingly,both the hormones are present in everyones body.So,how does a baby evlove into a boy or gal??If a baby is destined to evolve as a boy,androgen secretion is on a far larger amount that estrogen and vice versa.
Now comng to enunchs, Enunchs have the normal XX or XY chromosomes as everyone do.They are one among us till their 6 week in womb.But secretion of hormones in indifferent quantities, alter their fate. So, an enunch who is born with male genitals but having female characteristics, has just had a hormone secreted differently than you and me.
As their chromosomes are unaffected,Enunch's can give birth to normal children and they can be born of normal parents..So,it could have been you or me too..
Do you think everyperson you encounter daily is a male or female????This surprised me..Answer is NO..IT depends on how you classify a person as male or a female..
How do u classify a person as male?? coz he had the physical genitals of a man?? then enunch have them too..Is it coz male have the androgen hormone secreted in the right amount coinciding with his XY ?? Think again!!I had earlier quoted that a male has XY chromosome..But there are conditions when a male have XYX in him..this doesnt adversely affect him outward appearance but they show some symptoms of females like enlarged chests and curtailed growth of hair on the facial..For technical puritans, this is called as kinefilter syndrome .
Vice vera for a female, she can have instead of the normal XX an additonal Y chromosome, which may lead to male symptoms like hair growth in face for females.This is called turner syndrome.
Am sure we would have stepped on hundreds of such individuals in every walk of our life. we were not overly bothered, coz their outward appearance mattered to me and you.
I loved penning this blog, more so coz it helped me evolve and to view an individual for the person he/she is and not for the gender to which he/she belongs.
Am looking fwd for my next journey in 6732....jus that there will a "so called" male or female in my opposite berth.
I had all possible mean thoughts hovering around me, ranging from wot she would have filled in the ticket application form , as it had only checkbox for male n female - to who the unfortunate soul wud be to sit next to him/her.
There my beloved 6932 came after a long wait and i have this bad habit of getting a hot choc before boarding..I do that invariably to alllow the uncles,aunties to fight it out first as though they r standing in the queue for a thirupathi laddoo..I boarded last and waited outside the bay allowing an uncle to scramble with his luggaes when i saw the enunch that i had seen in the platform seated in my bay.I almost spilled my hot choc on my shirt..Wot the helll???? I know that fate loves playing games with me..but not to this extent..Let me be honest here, there were pretty gals in the next bay and i didnt wanna be a laughing stock before them.So, i decided to jus deposit my bag and go for a stroll till pantry little knowing that there isnt one in my beloved 6732.
I was standing aside the train door...i love doing that during my train journeys..I get reminded of the long journeys to pilani,when i used to sit in door steps of the train n have a chat with manly.TN express used to be a long one with almost 20 coaches so, it was a nice sight to see it making its curves..Then it struck me that i had to go to my seat for checking my ticket with the TTR...n i was in no mood to show my face there, even if i had to spend the whole night in the doorstep...
Clock ticked by...I finally decided to get back to the bay..I could see the TTR coming at the far end..I saw that all the 6 people in the bay were uncomfortable with her around..There was a newly wed which kept making gestures...Another family which was irritated at the very sight of her.She who had a seat among the 6 seats in the bay was made to sit in the sideberth..n the seat opposite to her was left unoccupied. But she cared little, she was reading some book and seemed unaffected by the things going around her..
I was wondering what fault was hers to be singled out by the society...Was that her fault to be born an enunch ?? In a society which readily accepts people wearing masks,y didn't i accept a person with only a different physical disability..What took me so long??for a person like me who is supposed to be educated ,broad minded blah blah...i had no damn right to see the 6 people in the bay with crticizing eyes. What took me 15 mins to realize is taking them a life time..
I spoke to her......period.
Our conversation lasted only for a few mins...I was actually surprised i did it..People in the bay had more reasons now to make me take the side berth which i gladly accepted...
Life provides you with opportunities,its upto us to make it as a memorable experience.I had made up my mind to know more about enunchs when i stepped in madurai..There is never a dearth for books at my home..My father has a stock of his medicine books right from college.I still remember, becoming fond of geneteics in school---Mendel's thoery that i read it from my fathers books..
What follows now will be a bit technical..but that made me understand my sex better and respect enunchs more..I'll try to keep it in layman terms....When a baby evolves in mother's womb..It doesnt have a gender associated with it for first 6 weeks. It is just a baby..not a boy or gal..Now for a brief history about chromosomes.a Male has XY chromosome and a Female XX. When a zygote is formed,it either has XX or XY but this doesn't necessarily decide the sex of the person.A baby after 6 weeks, has its hormones secreted. Male hormone is called androgen and female as estrogen.Surprisingly,both the hormones are present in everyones body.So,how does a baby evlove into a boy or gal??If a baby is destined to evolve as a boy,androgen secretion is on a far larger amount that estrogen and vice versa.
Now comng to enunchs, Enunchs have the normal XX or XY chromosomes as everyone do.They are one among us till their 6 week in womb.But secretion of hormones in indifferent quantities, alter their fate. So, an enunch who is born with male genitals but having female characteristics, has just had a hormone secreted differently than you and me.
As their chromosomes are unaffected,Enunch's can give birth to normal children and they can be born of normal parents..So,it could have been you or me too..
Do you think everyperson you encounter daily is a male or female????This surprised me..Answer is NO..IT depends on how you classify a person as male or a female..
How do u classify a person as male?? coz he had the physical genitals of a man?? then enunch have them too..Is it coz male have the androgen hormone secreted in the right amount coinciding with his XY ?? Think again!!I had earlier quoted that a male has XY chromosome..But there are conditions when a male have XYX in him..this doesnt adversely affect him outward appearance but they show some symptoms of females like enlarged chests and curtailed growth of hair on the facial..For technical puritans, this is called as kinefilter syndrome .
Vice vera for a female, she can have instead of the normal XX an additonal Y chromosome, which may lead to male symptoms like hair growth in face for females.This is called turner syndrome.
Am sure we would have stepped on hundreds of such individuals in every walk of our life. we were not overly bothered, coz their outward appearance mattered to me and you.
I loved penning this blog, more so coz it helped me evolve and to view an individual for the person he/she is and not for the gender to which he/she belongs.
Am looking fwd for my next journey in 6732....jus that there will a "so called" male or female in my opposite berth.
posted by sheikhee at 4:05 AM
7 comments
