They do not see the struggles a youngster endures; all they see are people who have not grown up, they think we need to learn more about life as we age before making decisions on our own.
For some people, age “defines” the maturity, mentality of a person.
Often we are encouraged to learn from a mistake but once we learn and apply our wisdom, we are put down for it because we’re “too young”. We may have not experienced what another individual has endured, but that doesn't mean we don’t know what its like to be tested over and over again. Age has absolutely nothing when it comes to enduring any type of hardship, pain, loss, grief.
Every test is always a stepping stone to becoming a better version of ourselves, to conquer the fears within us, to master the courage to defeat the doubtfulness within ourselves.
Recently someone said something very profound whilst discussing life . This person asked what problems I had, and I could not answer her. She then said “I don't really have any issues, although I do have a problem, which is missing fajr salaah.” To her, it did not seem like a major problem.
Almost instantaneously, she realised the mistake, the consequences behind those words and sincerely regretted it.
We may have laughed about it but we both took a step back, reflected and realised, although we’re at different stages in our lives concerning age or experiences, we both have so much to learn and progress from.
Remember, you may not have your entire life figured out, as long as you make time for Allah azza wa jal, He will grant you whatever it is that you seek, and you WILL figure it out inshaAllah. Sometimes we regret saying certain things and that makes us human but most of the time, something good comes from that lesson. In good and bad times, there is always wisdom behind it. We will not see it at that precise moment but gradually the blessing is unfolded.
This discussion had given me hope. We SHOULD be mindful of our salah, of our Creator. I don’t mean that humans are not supposed to struggle with regards to it, or that our Ibaadah( worship) should be perfect. I simply mean that we should get a “disturbed” feeling within ourselves if we miss our salaah without a valid reason, and not ignore it. That's how we reform ourselves.
Our biggest concern should be whether we have prayed on time, or made time for Allah Ta'ala and not have our focus on money or materialistic things. Often we focus so much on people and our outer appearance that we forget our hearts have hardened towards The One who will bring Barakah in our homes, our earning, our life. It is Allah who is the Provider, The Sustainer, The Healer, The Repairer of The Broken. At a time like this when most of us have more time on our hands to sit back and reflect, we spend it thinking about our problems, complaining, instead of speaking about them with our Allah azza wa jal.
You can go for that job you’ve always desired and still strive for your deen. Go for that interview, build yourself up. Whatever you do, do it with passion, keep it within the boundaries of your deen and always place your trust in Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.
May Allah grant us steadfastness in our prayer, and efforts.May He strengthen us and continue to grant us opportunities to reflect and better ourselves Aameen.