From Daughter to Bahu: A Personal Shift I’m Still Exploring

 

From Daughter to Bahu: A Personal Shift I’m Still Exploring

By Juhi — Mentor, Learner, Educator | Juhi the Explorer

If you had asked me a few years ago what it means to be a bahu (daughter-in-law), I would’ve probably smiled politely, not knowing what to say.
Because honestly? No one can explain it to you. You only begin to understand it when it becomes your reality.

I’ve spent most of my life being a daughter. Papa’s daughter, mom’s daughter, Avi’s elder sister — carefree, pampered, with my own world and ways. Even after maa left us in 2007, I held on to the warmth she left behind. I studied, grew, stumbled, and rose again — but always with a sense of who I was: a daughter of my home.

Then came marriage.
A beautiful ceremony, new faces, rituals, and responsibilities. Suddenly, I wasn’t just Juhi — I was now someone’s wife, someone’s bahu, part of a new household, a new routine, a new rhythm that didn’t feel mine yet.

🪞 The Mirror Doesn’t Lie — But It Does Confuse

There were moments I looked at myself in the mirror and wondered: "Is this really me?"
Waking up in a different city.
Adjusting to a new kitchen, different opinions, changed priorities.
Missing papa’s casual “kha liya kya?”
Wishing maa was here to guide me in this delicate dance between adjustment and self-respect.

Sometimes I did things out of love.
Sometimes out of expectation.
And sometimes… out of silence.



🌱 Not a Transformation, But a Transition

Being a daughter-in-law doesn't erase the daughter in me.
But it does test her.
Test her patience, her identity, her emotions.

Sometimes, I’m expected to smile when I want to cry.
Sometimes, I miss my aangan in Kalyan while sipping tea in Prayagraj.
Sometimes, I want to cook what I love — but make what others want.
This shift isn’t just in address or surname.
It’s in how I express, how I love, how I exist.

💌 A Letter to My Inner Juhi

Dear Juhi,
You’re doing just fine.
You may not have figured it all out yet — and that’s okay.
You’re allowed to feel lost.
You’re allowed to miss home.
You’re allowed to keep parts of your old self, even while stepping into new roles.
You’re not just a bahu.
You’re a woman, a soul, an explorer of your own journey.
And every step, even the uncertain ones, are still progress.

🌸 Closing Thoughts: Not All Shifts Are Smooth — But They’re Sacred

This journey from daughter to bahu is not a straight line.
It’s a maze. A wave. A quiet tug-of-war.
And I’m still exploring it.
Some days I win. Some days I just survive.
But every day, I stay true to both versions of me — the one who left home, and the one still finding it again.

Because maybe...
Being a bahu doesn’t mean giving up who you were.
Maybe it means carrying your roots, your fire, your softness — into a new space that hasn’t fully seen your light yet.

And slowly, gently… letting it shine.

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