A recent report by the World Health Organization states that in the Middle East, mental illnesses, dysentery and malaria account for the deaths of 43 percent of children under the age of five. The shocking effects of environmental hazards on the health of children in general and those in the Middle East more specifically led the WHO to choose “Shape the Future of Life: Healthy Environments for Children” as its theme for World Health Day last year.
The report states that more than 40 percent of the global burden of disease associated with environmental hazards falls on children under the age of five — who ironically make up only 12 percent of the world’s population. More than five million children under the age of five died in 2000 as a result of illnesses aggravated by environmental hazards. The number of deaths are estimated at 13,000 children a day.
Diarrhea alone kills 3.1 million children a year as a result of poor diet, unsafe drinking water and improper hygiene regulations. Respiratory diseases, aggravated by indoor air pollution, cause the deaths of two million children a year. A further 400,000 children die every year as a result of injuries sustained during road accidents, from burns and poisoning.
The WHO confirms that environmental hazards are aggravated by social circumstances such as poverty, natural disasters and man-made catastrophes such as wars, military occupation and civil unrest — all of which pose dangers to children who live through them, struggling and suffering in both body and spirit. This in turn has a great impact upon their psychological and social development.
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Aisha Khalid, 20, wrote to me that she is confused about the clash between the generations. She wonders why older people are so critical and suspicious of the young; they always speak of it as a lost generation, a generation without hope, without a future, reckless, strange, pessimistic, destructive, frightening and disturbing — the list is endless.
“We are,” she writes, “being attacked from all sides. This has been the constant topic in gatherings of relatives and friends. Sometimes discussions become so heated that each one defends his generation and blames another for all contemporary problems. My grandmother blames my mother and her generation for the current chaos in the world because women these days wash clothes in washing machines and use other electrical appliances. On the other hand, my mother ridicules me and my friends as a generation of robots, addicted to the Internet and other crazy innovations. She wonders what the world is coming to.”
Aisha is not sure whether she will not also find fault with her own children in a few years in just the way her grandmother and mother have done with their children. “Older people, when they refer to my generation, add interjections, such as ‘May Allah save your generation’ or ‘The end-of-the-world generation.’ Is this what is meant by the generation gap?
“Please tell me about your generation, how it passed through the various stages of growth from childhood to adolescence and youth. I believe that you always enjoyed freedom beyond what your elders gave you. The same thing is happening to our generation. We cross the boundary marked out by our parents’ generation. But believe me, I respect your generation and am proud of the contributions it made in every area of human development.
“You people really deserve respect and appreciation. I would also ask you to tell us of your personal experience with the generation before you. I would also like to know whether you constantly find fault with your children merely because they belong to a younger generation.”
Dear Aisha, from your letter I realize that you are a wonderful young lady. You have presented the case, not just of your generation but about the ones before it as well, in an excellent manner. I agree with all your arguments. I will write about my generation when I find the time.
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If you are in the habit of using your mouth more than your ears, you are never going to learn the merits of silence. Silence is a noble quality which protects you from base and vicious acts, but in your speech you commit them by the hundreds. The problem with the mouth is that it loves gossiping and overeating. Talkativeness is a hateful habit, particularly on occasions when one should be very sparing in the use of words.
No wonder then that the ancients praised silence. They said if speech is silver, silence is golden. Listening to people is a better way of making friends than talking to them. Words can make many enemies. More words mean more mistakes. A wound from bitter words is more painful than a blow by any weapon.
Wise men of the past said that one learns by listening and not by speaking. A listener gains; a talker loses. According to an Arab saying, silence is the most eloquent speech. Caliph Ali said: “Man is under his tongue, not under his clothes.”
An Arab proverb says: “A dog draws harm upon itself.” By its continuous barking in the night, enemies can easily locate your tents and bring trouble to you.
But if you ask me, I answer with Taha Hussain, the great Egyptian writer: “I am so-so.” Before you get all upset, let me point out that our ears also have certain drawbacks — though no doubt they are insignificant compared to those of the mouth.