It’s all getting colder by the day. Not the kind of cold that easily goes away by donning an extra sweater, or roasting your toes in front of the heater.
It’s getting so very cold.
Hearts are freezing. Icicles are now inhibiting a once warm and cozy arterial system.
Cold stares, chilled smiles, frosty faces, shivering minds. It’s a storm like never before.
Ours is a world where winters never go away. It’s not hard for a child to lose his warmth before he touches his twentieth year. He smiles affectionately at people and world at large, but is scolded for being too friendly or too compassionate(if that is even possible). He feeds a stray dog but gets rebuked for being filthy. He speaks kindly to the helpers at home but is lectured on the dangers of mingling with the lesser crowd. He is given lessons on obsessive competition and showing off from the early days. They tell him to shed his naivety and become street smart. He hates the term. He becomes permanently confused.
At school, he comes across little replicas of the big people he sees outside school. The same hypocricy, leg pulling, badmouthing and jealousy. The same habit of lying; in this case to get out of cheating in exams. The same disrespect towards elders; in this case, teachers.
He is now an adult. He may still have some warmth left in him, but even he can’t be sure anymore. They are relentlessly working to take it all away.
At home he has lost trust in relationships. No one has time for anyone. No one forgives. Everyone seeks revenge. You can’t do good to someone who didn’t do good to you. It’s a simple, unsaid rule. He can’t wrap his head around this one either. The daily money-making routine surpasses all.
At work, he feels happy for another’s success or at least does not resent it; but every other person around him does the opposite. He can’t do anything legal at work without paying off someone illegally. He hates himself for being weak. But everyone else around him seems so happy. He must be the wrong one , he thinks to himself. He struggles with everything around him. They mock and slander him. ‘A self-righteous drama’, they say.
Last flicker of warmth. He can feel his arteries shrivel. The cracks are beginning to show. A gust of vengeful wind furiously sweeps in.
Did the cold win?
I don’t have an answer to that just yet. The world is still standing so there is hope. But I know for a fact is that this is one storm, we can’t escape. It’s in us all. It’s around us all.
Let this be the year we open our eyes and admit to the cold that has inhabited our core.
Let this be the year we open our eyes and fight it out before the storm casts its final shot.
Nida Khan Writes 
Dense, clear, chillingly cold and yet so warm. What astute sense of observation and truly gifted. God bless you – and may you raise your children as you want then to be
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The raising bit is the hardest part. I don’t know how you did such a good job;)
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It’s an inspiring piece and definetely gives food for thought! Yes, the coldness is engulfing many of us and path to recovery depends a lot on how not to transcend our living spheres.
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spread the warmth… spread the warmth… Thank you for your thoughtful words:)
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Good Post Nida.
Parenting earnestly requires being mindful of the good & bad wolves circling within us all and the choice we make about which one to feed. The one we feed will grow.
The educated mothers like you can make every effort to feed the good wolf as much & as often as can be to see their children & the coming generations to become more psychologically healthy & happy. Children do learn from their elders, so the onus is on parents and other adults in their lives to show them how to make the right choices.
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Appreciate it:)! Parenting is by far the most difficult job in the world. I wonder how you all have done such a good job:)! Enabling our children to decipher right from wrong can only be done if we show it to them in real life. That’s the hardest part I think.
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Good job nida!! We desperately need to make our children learn the idea of philanthropism and benovelance so that they make this world a better place ..
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Thanks Zara. Very true; and it will only work if they see their parents doing such things…:)
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Very true! WE need to change ourselves in the first place!
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A cool and clear headed who is in complete command while translating the warmth of her heart into words……. truly , a remarkable writeup!….. You made your uncles proud , Young Lady !!
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Struggling with this deathly chill myself…Thankyou so much for reading:)
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The blog literally gets blocked by tearful eyes as truthful innocence portrayed by the young lady is hard to find in real world of today. Unfortunately the world has been all along like this with varying degree of prevalence of meaningful virtues getting diminished in time; we are at the lowest ebb nowadays. It started with Able & Caine and God kept getting his Prophets sacrificed for maintenance of natural justice and way of life as prescribed in divine revelations & testaments . Our Prophet (PBUH) brought perfect peace and harmony to the world and that too is on decline with each passing day. However, we must have firm faith in Allah and wait for the day when His supremacy will be established because it is His world and He alone knows how to run it; human beings will have to submit to His Will ultimately.
Your daughter (our daughter) has rightly said it is only a continuous storm hazing the world for a tiny period in the eternal domain of Almighty Allah; let us keep our hopes alive and stay close to God’s Commandments as much as we can. Patience is the Key with our Creator and same holds good for His Creatures.
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Thankyou so much for reading. Positivity, hope and the will to change ourselves; like you said is what we need.
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It’s unbelievable ! Such great emotions coming from a youth . She has tremendous potential and can contribute greatly to reform the society . We are proud of her .
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Truly appreciated:)!!
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After reading it all; I felt for a second like “ Hell had really frozen”. Very Precisely and pleasantly ;She took a boy on his life long cold ride, inch by inch on each and every step. But as Naveed said and I quote.
“ We as a nation are trapped deep down in to” Doldrums”. We surely need some heartfelt winds behind our sails. Now I know why God chose me to go to Miami; Just to stay always Warm ?
Good girl
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These are thought provoking words from a highly talented and extremely sensitive daughter who has so nicely described the coldness which has engulfed us as individuals , society and as a family…………….. she has described the hopeless reality so well………………………………………..yet, life has one great lesson to offer………………………………… despite the despondency, the struggle for good and humanity should never be given up………………………….your perceptive daughter can suggest a way out which is always there…. despite the gloom…………………….. regards…………………..
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After reading it all; I felt for a second like “ Hell had realy frozen”. Very Precisely and pleasantly ;She took a boy on his life long cold ride, inch by inch on each and every step.
“ We as a nation are trapped deep down in to” Doldrums”. We surely need some heartfelt winds behind our sails. Now I know why God chose me to go to Miami; Just to stay always Warm ?
Good girl
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