🌕 The Enemy in Her Head

 

The first time Keerthi heard Sindu answer a question in class, something inside her tightened.

Sindu’s answer was smart. The teacher smiled. The other kids nodded.

Keerthi smiled too… but her heart whispered, Of course she got it right again.

Sindu always seemed so confident. She was proud of who she was—her clothes, her traditions, her voice. She never tried to fit in. She didn’t have to.

Keerthi felt like she had to try hard all the time—and still didn’t feel good enough.

At first, Keerthi just rolled her eyes. Then she started making little jokes with her friends. Quiet ones. Unkind ones. Sindu never said anything back.

But one day, something big happened.

There was a special prize at school called the “Bright Star Award.” Only one person could win.

When Keerthi saw Sindu’s name on the list—but not hers—her heart felt like it was on fire.

She stared at the paper. Her hands shook. She didn’t know if she was more angry, or more sad.

So she went home, opened her notebook, and wrote this at the top of a page:

The Trigger Tree

And then she asked herself:

• What made me upset?
  Sindu won the award.

• How did I feel?
  Left out. Like I didn’t matter.

• What was I scared of?
  That I’ll never be good enough.

• Where did this come from?
  I was always behind & weak. I tried so hard, but no one noticed me

• What do I believe?
  That if someone else shines, there’s no light left for me.

Then she took a deep breath, and wrote:

“ Her power doesn’t steal mine. The sun and moon both rise, and neither asks permission from another; everyone is unique with their own light ”

She looked up. Across the room, Sindu was sitting by herself. Her eyes looked a little sad.

And in that moment, Keerthi didn’t see her as a rival. She saw a person—just like her—with worries and hopes and feelings too.

Moral

“The real enemy wasn’t Sindu. It was the voice in Keerthi's head that said only one of us could shine.”