22 November 2011, by Tracy Tan

Be free…

Be free to marry who you love

Be free to marry if you are young

Be free to marry if you are old

Be free to have 7 kids

Be free to have 1 kid

Be free to wait for the one you should marry

Be free to be brave and reject the ones you shouldn’t marry

Be free from what people say you should be

Be free to be who you are

Be free to love yourself

Be free to live life to its fullest

Be free to be happy

Be free from being judged

Be free from judging

Be free to be free!

I just wanna say that I am pro-choice. I think our society has unfortunately come to a point where people tend to pass judgement too quickly and too easily.  Regardless of whether you are a stay home mom or a working mom, people judge you. Doesn’t matter if you get married early or if you reach a certain age and are not married, people still judge you. People will also judge you if you have too many kids or no kids, and possibly even if you have kids that are all of the same gender! And when it comes to how you intend to raise your kids — not surprisingly, people also judge that too. What people fail to realise however, is that each family and individual is unique, so why should everyone’s life journey the same path? Embrace the people around you and respect their choices. Just because it may be different from yours, that doesn’t mean that it’s not as good as yours. I think it’s important to respect people and allow them to be the very best they can be. More importantly — recognise the energy (and influence) you bring to your surrounding environment, and the people around you. You may have a more significant impact than you think you do.

To me, it is key to make things work with the people that are actually involved in your life/relationships — regardless of how it may differ from what other people would expect. Ultimately, the happiness and welfare of your loved ones (and you) is what matters the most. A good guiding principle is just staying true to yourself and taking responsibility for not just yourself, but also the ones whom you care about. It doesn’t matter how much you declare your feelings towards the people you say you love. What you feel only really matters to you. It is what you do to the people you say you love, that really matters. That’s what counts in life. So be free, but be responsible!