Menstruation Matters To Everyone Everywhere
Those days have come, when society will isolate me,
When I will not be able to sit in the same room with my classmates,
The days when I can’t attend school anymore
Those days when I can’t sleep in the same house with my family,
When I will spend nights without bathing.
The days when I can’t eat good food even when it’s available
The days when I can’t play with my friends,
When I can’t go to the market or even to the hospital
Those days that make me feel like I’m dead while I am living.
The days have come, to be called unclean, untouchable, impure,
The days when a normal and natural process will become a secret
When I will have to suffer in silence.
Those days when I will not be allowed to sit and have a meal with my family,
When I can’t join the community in any function, not even in prayers
Those days that make some think a minor is ready for marriage,
The days when I can’t even touch a plant,
When I am not allowed to cook
The days which make me feel like I am nothing.
No one prepared me for those days, even when they
knew they will come,
I’m afraid to ask my parents, the only person I can talk to is my friend,
Who also knows very little about those days
No one can understand that I need sanitary pads, menstrual cups, tampons or clean cotton cloths during those days.
They don’t know that I need to drink a lot of water and eat good food during those days
They don’t know at times I need medicines to relieve the pain during those days
They don’t know that I need to exercise and relax during those days
They don’t know that I need their support to make those days safer for me.
And then came an educator, who taught us all about menstruation.
Who can confidently talk about those days.
He represents a community that I want to see
The community in which I believe menstruation matters
It’s something which is normal and not a taboo
And no one should be afraid to talk about it.
Now I know menstruation is normal and it’s what make me special
I feel proud that I am growing into a young woman who will one day, change Africa.
Poet: Ssekajoolo Mathew
Ssekajoolo from Uganda isa social worker passionate about empowering youth with information about their health.
Editor: Divya Rosaline
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