Anastasia from Romania: Everyday A Girl #EDAG

By Moraru Anastasia 

This is the story of Moraru Anastasia for #EverydayAGirl, as shared via UN Online Volunteers.

Being a girl can be harder than it seems, as from time to time, doors may be suddenly closed in front of you. You are expected to do the impossible and when you try to prove you can, you are told it's still not good enough. You can hardly oppose to what you've been conditioned to do. Can you use force? Is there any point in talking to walls?

I've never been the girl waiting for them to fall. I'm Anastasia and I break them down myself. 

I believe that the access to education is the only way to break walls down and to earn yourself a voice. Thus I make time for reading. My backpack is always full of books to share and recommend to everybody.

Even so, no matter how much we desire to be educated, school isn't always the place to speak your mind or, in any case, be yourself. Rare are the occasions when girls are allowed to wear what they want, when they aren't the victims of female malice and male mocking, when they aren't judged on how they look, speak, think. Envy, stereotypes and bad manners are deep rooted in our society.

Once you go back to the real world, you may find the old criticism, sometimes from your parents, that you are not the daughter they dreamed of or from teen lovers, for ruining your expectations. When you are a girl who has grown up reading and not playing so much, it will take a time to start relating to others. You might find yourself alone, waiting for somebody to come and talk to you. You are too shy to feel accepted. You will sit like me in this photo and wonder where did it all go wrong. It didn't. It's just part of growing up. People are changing and you change with them. It's okay to be quiet, as long as you realise the only way to be happy is to be contented with solitude from time to time. 

I believe in God and I pray whenever I feel very alone or very happy. Therefore, going to church is an important part of my life. However, the role of women in church has been long debated. Being raised as a Christian, I have my own doubts about getting involved in the debate. Not only tradition is important, but also making it adjust to the world we live in. You have to be moderate or it won't work the right way. However, I believe that I was born in this religion for a purpose and it was not just a circumstance. Maybe it could help me find a meaning.

Now I am getting ready to pack. For a person who wants a great future, this is a place where nobody should ever return if not convinced to make a change. The corrupted politics brought the town into bankruptcy and education is estimated to be at some of the lowest points in our country. No more jobs and there has been announced there will be no more heat next winter. How can anybody leave a town like this? There is no surprise that the most of us are going away. 

This is me as everybody can see me. Optimistic and cheerful, enjoying the best parts of my life. All in all, I am a 17 year old girl with big dreams in a small town on the banks of the Danube River, Romania. And I haven't lost my hope yet.

I might not know what I'll be doing in the following years, but it doesn't scare me. I am ready to try something new as ever since I was a child I moved with my parents in different cities for new beginnings. This might be my future life too. Always striving for more. That's why my motto is now 'Never Ever Settle'.

Anyway, I believe that I can write my own personal future and that I am capable of making a move in the right direction both for myself and the places I'll be going.

ABOUT EDAG

The story of Everyday a Girl, tagged #EDAG, is a glance into the lives of ordinary women through a series of poignant photo stories. These series of images will visually express the roles, challenges, activities and duties that females in diverse communities face in their daily lives.

SAFIGI Outreach Foundation Ltd, a volunteer-run NGO registered in Zambia, implemented EDAG in order to place a strong emphasis on positively redefining the role of females in our society. This campaign highlights that gender equality and equity, woman empowerment, and safety for the girls is key to the world’s socio-economic development.