The first time I felt beautiful. Thanks to the Man who couldn't See Me!!

It was the Year 2013, I was in the class of my lecturer Rajdeep Manwaniji who is visually challenged. I was looking forward to his class. He walked with confidence into the class and took a minute to understand our seating arrangement. He gave us instructions as to how to ask questions (e.g. tell our name before asking anything) and interact with him during the sessions and then started the class... it was an eye opener for me to understand disability from a new perspective.

And then he shared a real-life story and asked us questions, He did not look impressed with the first answer by one of my friends. I was the second one to answer. When I answered he took a long pause and I was wondering if I said something wrong, he then took a few steps toward me and says "Gowthami you are a beautiful person". My heart filled with gratitude and tears rolled down. Because all these years I had carried a feeling that I was not beautiful, thanks to the thousand comments I had heard as a child again and again. "You are too thin", You are too fair, You are too tall, and many many more.

Now here was a man who couldn't see me but called me beautiful. I think for the first time in my life I truly felt beautiful. I learned a powerful lesson that beauty is not what people see, but what people feel.

If you resonated with the story, would love to read your thoughts below

#ilhstory #EQ

Photo credit @unsplash

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