“No wonder I grew up so big. I hate myself for wishing to grow up!” Zara yelled, tossing a pillow across the room.

“Can I come?” Zara’s mother knocked on the door and entered. She kept a tray with a plate of delicious food and a glass of water.

“Mum, I’m sorry, but I want to be alone right now. I’m not feeling okay!”

Zara’s mother, understanding her situation, left the room, placing the tray on her bedside. Zara was a teenager who had changed both in her behaviour and her dressing style.

The night before, Zara and her mother had a small argument over dinner. Her mum had prepared a delightful plate of vegetables and rice, but Zara refused to eat it, insisting it wasn’t what she liked. In her frustration, she knocked over a vase filled with beautiful roses.

Her mother ignored it, but moments later, Zara yelled from the other side of the room. “Mummy! Why do you throw away my clothes and change the setting of my room?”

Her mother was shocked as Zara had never raised her voice so loud. It was a strange behaviour that she had never witnessed from her dear daughter before. Zara slammed her bedroom door and locked herself inside.

At night when her father came home, her mother discussed the matter and Zara’s behaviour with her dad. Her dad smiled and knew exactly what was wrong. “Let me handle it. It’s time we step back. Don’t do anything for her — no cooking, no laundry, no searching for her missing things,” he said and also advised to remain calm, no matter what Zara does.

The next day, as soon as Zara woke up, she saw the clock and realised she was getting late for school. Normally, her mother would wake her up, but that day she didn’t. Zara quickly got dressed, but was shocked to find her mother still sleeping and there was no breakfast prepared. Angrily, she grabbed some money to buy food from the school canteen.

Later that afternoon, when Zara returned from school, the peaceful sound of running water filled the house. She rushed toward the kitchen, eager to find her mum, but what she discovered changed her mood entirely.

“Ma’am has gone out shopping, but she hasn’t made any food today. She said she would eat out,” the maid explained after seeing Zara.

At first Zara could not believe what she was hearing. Then a tear dropped from Zara’s eye out of frustration. She immediately rushed to her room, locked the door, and went into the washroom. Staring at the mirror, she began to cry, as if releasing the emotions she had bottled up for a long time.

“Am I really that imperfect? Does everyone hate me and not care at all?” she whispered to herself. After nearly 20 minutes of crying, she heard the doorbell ring. Quickly, she wiped her tears, washed her face and stepped out of her room.

When she saw her mother had returned with a handful of shopping bags, she came in front of her, but soon Zara felt invisible, as if her presence went unnoticed. This time, it wasn’t a tear that fell; it was a surge of anger that began to build within her.

She stayed in her room all day, eating junk food. Her stomach kept making weird noises since she wasn’t used to eating such food. That night, her father arrived home and knocked on her door after hearing her cries.

He entered and sat beside her.

“Zara, dear, what is wrong with you?” her dad asked.

“What’s wrong with me? No, dad, what’s wrong with mum?” she replied.

Zara told her dad everything her mother had done that day and how she felt invisible. Her dad smiled and began an important conversation about her life. He explained that she had grown up to be a teenager and it was completely normal to feel a surge of various emotions during this time. Sometimes, teens hate things, get irritated easily or feel the need to pull away from their parents and make their own choices.

“Yes, dad, that does happen to me!” she responded.

“But that doesn’t mean you should misbehave or forget to respect your elders. If you have a problem, instead of yelling, you should discuss it politely,” he advised.

“Your mother was concerned about your behaviour and whatever she did, it was I who told her to do so. You may feel angry at times due to so many things, but that does not mean that you can take out that anger on your mother. Make sure to apologise to your mother!” her dad said.

Zara felt embarrassed, she slowly walked to her mother, hugged her and apologised, promising she wouldn’t behave that way again.

Now, Zara understood that what she had done was wrong. Whatever she was going through was a matter of time and things would come to normal, she only had to control her emotions and make sure not to hurt anyone.

Published in Dawn, Young World, February 15th, 2025