I read The Vagina Monologues a couple of days back. Nothing and nobody warned me how it was going to affect me. In fact, I was hesitant to read it at first (I mean, who reads and writes about vagina anyway – well look who’s talking right now) but it was FP who urged me to read it. He told me that I need to find out more about myself.

And he was right.

I had no idea it was going to make me cry so many times. I had no idea that it was going to touch me in an indescribable way, and I certainly had no idea that it was going to make me realize what it really means to be a woman. It delves right to the very core of a girl – a forgotten, often neglected part of being female.

After reading this book, I realize that all women belong to a certain unspoken-of sorority. Right at our very core, we all share the same thing – something that we are born with, something that is ours and will always be ours. Yes, I realized after reading this that the vagina is in fact the very core of a woman.

I love how, when a 6 year old girl was asked what her vagina reminded her of, she answered, “A pretty dark peach. Or a diamond I found from a treasure and it’s mine”. That’s an answer that is so innocent and yet goes so deep down your soul, you know it’s true.

Two of my favourite monologues in the book are: Because He Liked to Look at It & I was There in the Room

Because He Liked to Look at It speaks about a woman who has always thought her vagina was ugly and was embarrassed and ashamed of it. I believe that most women feel the same way about her vagina, me included. So to have to read that this woman has found a man that simply adores vagina is truly touching.

This was what he said upon looking at her vagina, ” You’re so beautiful [...] You’re elegant and deep and innocent and wild”. Prior to this, he insisted of taking a look at it because this was who she is.

I was There in the Room will shake you emotionally, whether or not you are already a mother. It describes the birth of a child and the very important role the vagina plays in this process. How it changes from being “a shy sexual hole to an archaeological tunnel, a sacred vessel, a Venetian canal, a deep well with a tiny stuck child inside, waiting to be rescued”.

How it changes colours throughout the process and how it eventually became “completely exposed, mutilated, swollen and torn” and how a vagina is really like the human heart.

It was a short read really, if you minus the forward and the whole chunk about V-Day at the back. All I can say after reading it was, “Wow”. It has made me want to love myself even more, I feel myself embracing womanhood and so proud that I’m on this side of the human race. Many books have made me emotional but this book attacked the very being of me.

It’s a must read for all girls and women of all ages. Trust me. Some things to ponder on before you read the book: If your vagina got dressed, what would it wear? & What does a vagina smell like?