No Reason to Cry

  •   Sat, Feb 21 2026
  •   By Aditi Atulkumar Surana

February 21, 2026

It was one of those hot, sultry afternoons when the adults seemed capable only of napping, leaving the kids to monopolise the empty streets. So, under the big, orange lamp post, that cosplayed the sun at night, a seven-year-old, me played with my younger brother and my friend, Sucha.

I can't remember the game we were playing; maybe it was catch.

My brother tumbled to the ground and started crying loudly. I made him stand and dusted his knees peeking from underneath his lime-green shorts.

“Look,” I say, trying to reason with a three-year-old. (Yes, I still expect too much from people.) “Why are you crying? Look, you aren’t even hurt.”

I brushed off the stray pebbles on his knees and realised there was nary a scratch on him. What a drama queen, I think to myself. He must’ve disliked the game we were playing.

“Oye,” Sucha said. “Look up!”

From my kneeling position, I looked up and saw my brother’s forehead sprouting blood like a half-eaten Eclair. It looked quite like Ashwathama’s wound must’ve looked after Krishna pulled out the precious stone embedded in his forehead.

I rushed to call my mother, who took my brother to the nearby clinic. He has to get stitches to stop the bleeding.

Over a decade later, it occurred to me when, after a long, dry spell, I turned to the past for writing material. It was a lesson I took a long time to grasp. Sometimes, you won’t understand why someone is hurting for something that seems trivial or normal to you. At such a time, instead of accusing them of overreacting, it’s wise to ask: "Why are you hurting? Where are you hurting?”

What you cannot understand, ask, instead of assuming.

There may not always be a Sucha to tell you where to look.

 

 

 

 
By Aditi Atulkumar Surana
To submit your article / poem / short story to Daijiworld, please email it to news@daijiworld.com mentioning 'Article/poem submission for daijiworld' in the subject line. Please note the following:

  • The article / poem / short story should be original and previously unpublished in other websites except in the personal blog of the author. We will cross-check the originality of the article, and if found to be copied from another source in whole or in parts without appropriate acknowledgment, the submission will be rejected.
  • The author of the poem / article / short story should include a brief self-introduction limited to 500 characters and his/her recent picture (optional). Pictures relevant to the article may also be sent (optional), provided they are not bound by copyright. Travelogues should be sent along with relevant pictures not sourced from the Internet. Travelogues without relevant pictures will be rejected.
  • In case of a short story / article, the write-up should be at least one-and-a-half pages in word document in Times New Roman font 12 (or, about 700-800 words). Contributors are requested to keep their write-ups limited to a maximum of four pages. Longer write-ups may be sent in parts to publish in installments. Each installment should be sent within a week of the previous installment. A single poem sent for publication should be at least 3/4th of a page in length. Multiple short poems may be submitted for single publication.
  • All submissions should be in Microsoft Word format or text file. Pictures should not be larger than 1000 pixels in width, and of good resolution. Pictures should be attached separately in the mail and may be numbered if the author wants them to be placed in order.
  • Submission of the article / poem / short story does not automatically entail that it would be published. Daijiworld editors will examine each submission and decide on its acceptance/rejection purely based on merit.
  • Daijiworld reserves the right to edit the submission if necessary for grammar and spelling, without compromising on the author's tone and message.
  • Daijiworld reserves the right to reject submissions without prior notice. Mails/calls on the status of the submission will not be entertained. Contributors are requested to be patient.
  • The article / poem / short story should not be targeted directly or indirectly at any individual/group/community. Daijiworld will not assume responsibility for factual errors in the submission.
  • Once accepted, the article / poem / short story will be published as and when we have space. Publication may take up to four weeks from the date of submission of the write-up, depending on the number of submissions we receive. No author will be published twice in succession or twice within a fortnight.
  • Time-bound articles (example, on Mother's Day) should be sent at least a week in advance. Please specify the occasion as well as the date on which you would like it published while sending the write-up.

Leave a Comment

Title: No Reason to Cry



You have 2000 characters left.

Disclaimer:

Please write your correct name and email address. Kindly do not post any personal, abusive, defamatory, infringing, obscene, indecent, discriminatory or unlawful or similar comments. Daijiworld.com will not be responsible for any defamatory message posted under this article.

Please note that sending false messages to insult, defame, intimidate, mislead or deceive people or to intentionally cause public disorder is punishable under law. It is obligatory on Daijiworld to provide the IP address and other details of senders of such comments, to the authority concerned upon request.

Hence, sending offensive comments using daijiworld will be purely at your own risk, and in no way will Daijiworld.com be held responsible.