I couldn't meet up with my engagement here for two days now and it makes me feel down, I don't know how long my busy schedule will continue but I hope it gets better.
In case you missed the first two episodes of the story, you can check here.
Juan couldn't stand the pain, she was weeping bitterly in the cab. The cabman was an elderly man, he was concerned but wasn't sure if he should interfere or not, he doesn't want to be embarrassed.
He was looking at from the front-rear mirror and at a point, he couldn't bear it anymore and decided to pull over. Juan noticed the car was slowing down and she asked the cabman if anything was wrong, he replied that nothing was wrong.
He started a conversation immediately after he was properly parked.
My daughter, please don't be offended by my action. I had to pull over because I couldn't bear the tears, I don't know if you can share your problems with me because I believe that you are a child, I wouldn't sit here and watch you cry that much.
Was I crying? Juan asked as she touched her wet face. Oh sorry, my bad. I was thinking of something and it made me emotional, I didn't even know tears were coming out of my eye already.
The Old man smiled and replied her, I am not a kid and I know something is stirring your heart but I respect your decision if you don't want to share it with a stranger but whatever it is, follow your heart and don't ever allow your happiness to be taken away from you.
He started the engine and continued on the trip again. My son must be as old as you are if he was alive and this year marked the 5th year since he died, I still regret forcing him into something he didn't want for himself. Since his death, I haven't lived a happy life and something tells me that I might find redemption only in helping someone one day.
Juan felt pity for him and consoled him, can you pull over again sir? She asked.
The old man pulled over and narrated how his son committed suicide because of their tradition, the first male child of the family must remain in the community and when he was denied the privilege to travel, he took his life. She was surprised with what she heard and made up her mind not to return to Europe, she was ready to sacrifice herself for the freedom of others.
It could be my only purpose in the world, she forced a smile out of her face as she asked where she could lodge and the cabman took her to one of the best hotels in the town.
All that time, her mother was calling her but she didn't pick up and after two days of calling, they became very scared because it is very unusual of her and there is a trend that the children denied the freedom to do what they want end up committing suicide.
Juan's parents started quarreling with one another because the mother threatened her father if they lose their daughter. Meanwhile, Juan has embarked on the quest of ending every traditional bondage depriving the youth of living the good life they, will she succeed?
Concluding part...
Juan stayed in the hotel and avoided people who could recognize her, she was able to gather enough information about their culture after two weeks of investigation and research.
She came to understand the reasons why most of those laws were made during ancient times, it was clear that the laws were definitely overhyped and their parents took things further than they should have done, it is one of the reasons why they are having setbacks in their tribe despite having great people from the tribe. They are all avoiding home because of this culture and tradition thing they are obsessed with, the youths wanted to stay away from home as much as possible.
Why the Laws were made.
When civilization started making its way into the world, a lot of people from the ancient tribe started migrating and their communities started getting scanty. The elders gathered together and decided to make laws that would make their coming generation stick together and aside from their intentions of keeping themselves together, there wasn't any repercussion to breaking the rules but the people keep creating the fear of breaking the rules in the heart of their children and the kids also pass it on when they have their kids as well.
Juan knew she had enough evidence, she employed one of the tribe historians to help her with more information and she went to visit the elders. She made them understand the effect of their tradition on the youths and how they have lost great talent to death all in the name of honoring traditions.
It was a 72 hours meeting with the elders and in the end, she was able to make them change those laws and instead of threatening the youth, they made them understand the importance of not forsaking their origin. The news of the law amendment spread across the corners of the tribe through the local TV, the internet made it very easy to disseminate the information globally.
Juan's father saw the news and was happy, he searched for his daughter and when he found her, he apologized. Juan was allowed to marry the man of her choice and she lived happily ever after, she ensures she brings her kid home to her parent every year during vacation.
The amendment in the law brought lots of development to the tribe and their leaders wished they have done that earlier, Juan became more special and her name will never be forgotten in the history of the tribe.
I had to compress the story to avoid having more chapters, I hope you enjoyed reading? Thanks as usual.
All image was created by me using Canva.
Well, I wouldn't judge tradition because it is a system that gives society its form. But that is not to say there aren't retrogressive aspects of tradition. There are good parts of it too. However, as time advances society must learn to evolve with it, without necessarily losing its form.