110 Letter from Easnin Ara
Keep Rolling!
Dear Unseen Friends (hope to meet somehow somewhere sometime),
If you are in touch with this book and reading the letters, it means that you are already in the amazing academic world to explore, expand and/or express your virtues. I would like to congratulate all of you for being a part of this knowledge domain which gives us the incredible opportunity to learn every time and be a student of all time!
Although I am not sure how far my journey into the academia would facilitate your pathway, I must say the letters (with inspiring stories) in this book along with the remarkable contributions by many amazing women from different corners of this world have broadened my view towards life (both personal and professional) and given me new enthusiasm and solutions to some of my questions (unasked but always curious to get the answers). Henceforth, I am writing this letter to express my heartfelt gratitude to all those amazing women and also to say hello to the new tourism academics with my sweet and sour journey into the academic world so far.
This is Easnin speaking, a woman from a small but beautiful country – Bangladesh – where almost half of the population is female. However, the misery of the fate is that females here still need to struggle a lot if they want to build a professional career (although there are recent efforts from the government for women empowerment, the problem lies within the mindset of the society). I am one such example and following is the story of my tenacity to do something different (other than the ‘so-called feminine role’).
I was born in 1988 in a patriarchal society where females were allowed to get an education but were not expected to work outside of their home domain. They also got married early in life even leaving their education incomplete. My mother was one such example. She was a very talented lady but could not build any professional career because of family responsibilities and social boundaries. Her sacrifice became my inspiration to challenge the limits for female boundaries. In doing so, I never disregard the duties of females toward the family (‘so-called duties’ I must say as I do believe those duties are applicable for males as well), rather my objection lies upon their role ‘only within the home boundaries’. Henceforth, I have grown up with the belief and strong desire that being a female my duties should not be confined within the family; rather, those should be broadened towards mankind and the world.
Regardless of being members of a patriarchal society, my parents had a very progressive mentality which added wings to my thoughts, encouraging me every time to look beyond the horizon (feminine role). Their open-mindedness enabled me to have a colorful and amazing childhood. Despite ‘so much’ social pressure, they always tried to pay attention to my desire to blur the boundaries between ‘man and woman’ considering both as ‘human’. As well as playing doll house, I us