Voice of British Muslim Women

Hala Hadi, Deer Park

‘Times are bad. Children no longer obey their parents, and everyone is writing a book.’

— sometime between 43 BC and 1908

It seems that since the dawn of civilization, mankind has been united by one enduring conviction: that the the youth of the day are not up to par. Today, it’s that they won’t vacuum the living room. Yesterday, they would not light the fireplace. The day before that, they could barely be convinced to fetch water from the local well. Time will assume its primordial habit of quietly making its way through empires, but the children, they will always remain the same. They simply won’t listen. 

Perhaps this feeling is a symptom of the human condition, one which does not greet changing times with open arms. 

‘If I could keep this room precisely the same 

I would sit in the memories like warm-drifting flowers

With no new wind blowing and no new name

I’d suspend the years into mere frozen hours’

In the South Asian community specifically, we remember our childhoods with fruits that let out aromas that could arrest the room for hours. The distinct vibrancy in the colours of plants, or how the air inhabited a mischievous calm back then. In an attempt to have our children experience this too, we may try to pause time and let them inherit our dreams.

It is very common to hear things such as ‘my parents want me to be a doctor’, ‘they would prefer if I didn’t go into that field’. A 2025 study on Pakistani youth found that 64% of students felt that their parental preferences would change their career paths.[1] In this regard, whilst trying to stop time, we may find we pass our thoughts to our children. 

This is, of course, not to suggest that parents do not want the best for their children. Rather, for International Youth Day, I wanted to turn my attention to some of the quieter, more overlooked challenges young people face: gaining the trust to find their own way and navigate the world.

Even in nature we see this process of letting go in ‘fledging’ when a bird embarks on its first flight. The mother bird, after nurturing her young, takes a step back and trusts the wind under the chick’s wing to carry them forward towards the boundlessness that is the sky. And in the soft charm of its youthfulness, the bird knows only that it must look to the star high above, towards which it must fly and become.

We must remember that a child too possesses this pursuit and is themselves like a gentle star. They are a wonder magic walking on two feet, tangibly around us.

‘Verily, in the heavens We have made constellations and adorned them for those who behold’- Holy Qur’an Chapter 15:17 [2]

The sky is a marvellous thing, one which stores dreams so bountifully. Awe and wonder, which give life its vigour, are often inspired by the lattice of the expanse up above. Don’t you observe the colossal vastness of the sky and think of greatness too? Why then do we not let our children see it with their own eyes instead of ours? 

We should encourage our children to strive for the noblest causes so they too can match the contributions of Dr Abdus Salam. If we can teach them to aim high and look to their own aptitudes, we can allow our children to achieve limitless potential. Indeed, why would God show us the stars if we weren’t supposed to gleam wisdom from His Signs?

---

[1]  Role of Parents on Their Children’s Educational Career Choices in Pakistan, By Sidra Nazeer. Available at URL: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/400579568_Role_of_Parents_on_Their_Children’s_Educational_Career_Choices_in_Pakistan

[2] The Holy Qur’an with English Translation by Maulawi Sher Ali, Chapter 15 Verse 17