Daily Times

1. What happened to “simple life is happy life”?

All I see is people becoming as fake as the fancy Instagram filters. It seems as if there is race and everyone, you and I, the girl next door, the shopkeeper, the driver, every single being is running hard to win a prize no one knows of. What happened to “simplicity” and “minimalistic living”. It seems as if nothing shorter than perfect, even if it is unreal, will do. The pictures we take no longer serve memories but a shallow projection of our wealth and pretentious happiness. The food we eat, no longer brings us together rather it’s a massive show of how unhealthy and inexpensive and outdated your food and food choice is compared to mine. The conversations we have are only “heart to heart” in the hashtags we put up. Every single thing we are doing is to serve our inner complex, be it inferiority or superiority. We are in a world where it is more important to look OK than be OK in the true sense of the word.

2. What happened to our Values, our roots?

When I was in school, my teachers, irrespective of their subjects were most concerned about my moral values than any other thing. We were asked to leave the class if we were rude to the teacher, we were never encouraged to against the wishes of Quran and Sunnah instead if someone did they were counselled. All this resulted in “our generation” understanding the significance of our values and staying grounded. But what’s wrong with the present times? I mean why is everyone concerned about themselves? Be it teachers, professors, intellectuals of the present time even parents. What is wrong with correcting someone when they seem to go astray? Why is current generation so opposed to the idea of being schooled? Although most certainly they need it. Why is it so risky to my respect and dignity to be able to talk to a teenager about their shortcomings? Why are they so full of arrogance and what is that has drifted them from their roots? Are they no longer prone to improve? Have they already reached the stage of self-actualization?

3. What happened to our folktales?

Remember our naanis and daadis used to tell us stories from there times.  Stories that had a clear moral lesson. Stories from their ancestors, stories that changed them for good. Stories that only God knows were true or not but left a mark on our hearts and minds. And every time we were about to do something wrong, our granny’s voice would echo in our heads and we’d stop right away with the fear of the same happening to us as it happened to the character in the story. What happened to all that? Have we passed the same to our younger generation? Do they know what your were blessed to know and comprehend? Do they know your folktales?

I am sure all these questions must have been discussed a million times during our office tea breaks or family gatherings and other at other social arenas, however, what keeps my mind restless is who has the solution to these problems? Is it you, me or perhaps each one us has to play their part to bring back what we are the verge of losing. Let’s make values, morals and ethics fashionable again!