Putting Things Into Perspective

I have always fought with my mom over the silliest things. I don't want to sort out the clothes right now; Why should I do it?
Typical teenage behaviour, right? But today, we were watching the news together. And they were talking about Malala Yousafzai, the sixteen year old girl who dared to challenge the Taliban because they tried taking away her right to education. So much so, that even after the Taliban tried to kill her, she didn't stop believing in and fighting for her cause. Kind of makes me sound like a shallow, spoiled brat in comparison. She is a year younger than I am, and she has managed to make such a difference in the world. She is by far the bravest girl I have ever seen. She spoke of her friend, who was her age and already saddled with one baby and another on the way. Can you imagine losing your childhood that way? Not being able to have fun? Just growing up way too fast. Getting married to a man who is probably twice your age. Taking away a young girl's innocence. That if you ask me, is a real crime. All of us are born with dreams and hopes and ideals. And yes, some of us do get disillusioned. But that doesn't mean we get disillusioned at the tender age of 14 or 15.
A girl so brave. These are the kind of stories you would think only existed in books. Because, the cynics that we are, we can't believe that just a little girl could be capable of such a movement, and such passion. But it's true. Malala Yousafzai is real. And her belief in education for girls is real. No one can take that away. Not even the Taliban. How much ever they tried to render her efforts futile, all it did was make her and her cause even more famous. 

Neighborhood

What happened to the good, old days, when someone new moved into the neighborhood, and people went out of their way to make them feel welcome? Now all people seem to do is torment the newcomers, making them wish they hadn't come in the first place. This isn't high school. And even if it was, the people in my colony would definitely not qualify as jocks and cheerleaders! We have new residents in our colony, and everyone here has gone out of their way to make them feel unwelcome.
Be it, confiscating their little boy's frisbee, or forbidding them from getting a dog. To the extent, that they have insulted them to their faces. Shut them out completely. Who in the world do they think they are?Dictators? If so, where's the charisma, because last I heard, that was a requirement in the job description.
I can't get over how uptight they are. They are way too self-important.
And seriously, what's with all the hazing? Most of them are approaching retirement, or already have. Isn't it time to grow up? Isn't it time to be mature and wise? Instead of being petty and mean to people who have done nothing to deserve it?
I guess, the world truly is a harsh place. Where you can't even get a friendly smile from your neighbor. Where the emotion you instigate with strangers is animosity. How is there any chance of creating relationships then? How can one expect to be happy in such a world? Tragic, tragic. Especially since we come from a culture that tells us that our guests should be treated like god. We've pretty much ruined chances of attaining salvation then too, haven't we?