Coming Together to Heal.

Frightening Lonely Life

This story depicts the artist who had been raped multiple times by multiple people within the time span of 10-15 years. As a survivor, she reflected how she was raped, and how this incident made her worthless, frightened, and bad. This story shows how those incidents and situations became nightmare and she was unable to sleep.

My Unforgettable Moments 

This participant’s story cloth tells the story of how the boss of the workplace behaves with their staff, especially when they belong to poor family. She remembers how the boss threatened her not to behave as her mother because her mother was a drunkard, else she will be kicked out of the job in the same way how her mother was kicked out. The story tells the discrimination found in the workplace. The participant was able to feel relieved as she shared her past challenges and completed her story cloth in Sajha Dhago.

Black Butterfly

This is the story cloth of the participant, the one who was able to embrace his identity as a transman, the one who understood his worth is not defined by the society but own self. At the end of making the story cloth, he evolved as a confident person, he felt empowered and was able to transform his life from being colorless to colorful.

Me And My Hopeless Life

“Me and my hopeless life” is what this participant wanted to share through her story cloth. The participant shared how happy she was until her marriage and how her life changed once her husband’s first wife and son came and lived in their house. “I forgot my identity during this struggling phase. Still, I ask who I am.  When I sit under the tree and think about my family, what is my identity….” This participant was struggling in finding her identity in the society, in her family.

Bully

This story is about the participant who was bullied and harassed in the school not just by the students but by the teachers as well. With the thought that her parents would get hurt, she couldn’t share what was she going through and she kept the pain within her for years. Because she couldn’t handle the pain, she attempted suicide. She still felt anxiety whenever she thought of the school. She expressed her gratitude towards Sajha Dhago for listening to her story.

This Hand Is Not To Hold A Pen, It Is To Hold The Sickle

The story is about the old woman whose husband used to doubt about her character when he was in foreign employment, even her son gets drunks and get suspicious on her. The story is about the woman whose husband is diagnosed with mental illness and is on medication for the same. The story depicts the life of women, how happy she was when she was a child and how her life changed when she was married off to a wrong person.

A Life Without Husband

“My husband died when my children were small. At that time my financial condition was very bad. Because my husband was dead, people used to talk behind my back. Because of this, I thought of committing suicide and also killing my children….” This the story of a widow, how the society looks at her and how she has to go through lots of challenges just because she is a single woman and a single mother. She fought with the society, she didn’t lose hope and became a part of different woman groups (Mahila Samuha) and this has helped her come out of the depression. She is thankful towards the law that supports single woman. She is now living a happy life with her son already married and her daughter is now like her friend.

A Same Pain Story of Mother and Daughter- Breast Cancer 

This is the story is of the survivor of the breast cancer, her mother also had breast cancer and her family, her in-laws did not support her during such rough time. The story is about how she fought with breast cancer. “I remembered thinking that my two sons would be very sad about my suffering. After the diagnosis, I did proper treatment with consultation of doctors. Even at such time my family did not support me…..” At such hard time when she should be getting support from her husband and in laws, she didn’t get any support. Instead, her husband said he would marry other women if she would die of cancer. The story shows the cruelty of our society, and how no one would support, especially when one is going through rough patch.

Life Is Character Where Everyone Needs To Play

Made by the participant who is was going through physical and emotional abuse by a husband, the story cloth expresses the reluctancy to leave a violent relationship due to the fear of retaliation and cultural stigma associated with divorce. The participant described the experience as extremely traumatic and distressing. She felt overwhelmed with fear, anxiety, and uncertainty about her future. She was also worried about the impact of the trauma on her children, who had witnessed the violence and were struggling to cope with the sudden change in their living situation. Her past traumatic experiences such as abuse, neglect, or loss itself was painful. After making story cloth in Sajha Dhago, she shared that, “Each stitch helped to recover from my painful experience.”