My friend is a very frustrated and depressed person. They came to me a few months ago feeling troubled from head to toe. I asked them the reason, and they replied with frustration, "I am upset due to the country's conditions." I smiled and said, "Did you ruin the country's conditions?" They immediately said, "Absolutely not." I asked, "Can you fix these conditions?" They replied, "Not at all."
I chuckled and asked, "Then why are you distressed?" They got upset with me and left in disappointment. My friend is currently in a hospital in Karachi, suffering from a stroke caused by stress and depression. They have been struggling their whole life, while others who caused or can fix these issues are living their lives carefree.
I recently turned fifty years old, but I wonder if I am truly fifty. I was born in a village where no one recorded birth dates of children. Even if such a tradition existed, it wouldn't have mattered as no one in my family was educated, and I was the first child in my family to attend school, so keeping track of my birth date was impossible. When was I born? My primary school teacher made that decision. During Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's era, the fifth-grade exams were conducted by the government board. The teachers referred to this exam as the "Job's exam" because the students who secured top positions would receive a monthly stipend. Therefore, the teachers decided to call it the "Job's exam" and required the students to submit their birth dates for registration. Since I was born without any record of my birth date, I faced difficulties at school. There were 28 students like me in my school, all without recorded birth dates, and all of us managed to reach the fifth grade, despite the teachers' strictness and caning.
"Our master lined up these children in a row in the train. He carefully looked at all of us and wrote down January 1st, 1968, as the birth date for all 28 children in the meal register. So, we were all born on January 1st. Even if I try today, I can't escape the master's decision. Regardless, I was born on January 1st, 1968. I have accepted this fact, and now I am fifty years old. I personally believe that someone who doesn't look beautiful by the age of twenty can't have a beautiful life. Likewise, someone who isn't settled in their home by the age of forty can't have a happy life, and someone who isn't wise by fifty can't have a wise life. I have turned fifty, and I can easily declare myself as wise, but I understand that in this vast universe of Allah, no one becomes truly wise without understanding themselves. We are not wise; we are just experienced. My fifty years of experience have taught me valuable lessons about the nature of life.
I have realized that time itself is neither good nor bad; it's just time. We judge its goodness or badness based on our circumstances. One person stands within the bars of a jail; this time is bad for them. Another person stands just outside those bars; this is the best time of their life as they have been promoted to a jail superintendent today. Both are alive at the same moment, but the meanings of that moment are different for each of them. A team leaves the field after losing a game."
This is the worst day of his life. The other team is celebrating their victory, making it an unforgettable day for them. You see, it's just one day, but the meanings of days are different. So, I've learned that instead of trying to change time, we should change our circumstances, our position, and then our time will become better. We should strive not to become prisoners or join the losing team but be a part of the winning team. We should keep learning, and if, God forbid, we become prisoners or part of the losing team due to our foolishness, we shouldn't be sad.
Let's put efforts into turning imprisonment into freedom and defeat into victory. We will succeed sooner or later. I have learned that nothing remains constant in Allah's universe. Kings become beggars, and beggars become kings in no time. I have seen people who used to beg are now millionaires, and millionaires have become beggars. Before me, stars in the showbiz industry were at the peak of their careers, and now their careers have turned into ruins and anonymity. I have witnessed actors, athletes, musicians, singers, writers, and bureaucrats, whose paths people would bow to and offer their turbans and hats, but eventually, those same people became lessons that even the lesson itself learned from their fate.
In Allah's world, only change is constant. Everything else comes and goes, and no one can stop the process of change. Therefore, be thankful for the good moments today and be prepared for the bad moments tomorrow. I have learned that wealth is what you have spent, food is what you have eaten, relationships are what you have nurtured, power is what you have exercised, youth is what you have passed, rest is what you have taken, and happiness is what you have celebrated.
Every coming day of your life will take you backward, not forward. Life is what you have lived, or it is what you are currently living. It's certainly not what you are waiting for. So, learn to spend each day as if it were the last day of your life. Complain and grudges will no longer be with you. I have learned that you come into this world alone, and you leave alone. Even in the midst of coming and going, a person remains alone. All those people who try to fill this loneliness between coming and going with others are often left disappointed.
People often end up feeling more isolated in the end than when they started alone. So, embark on your journey as if you're on your own. It will lead you to a fulfilling experience. Along the way, if you meet a good person, express gratitude, but don't mistake them for a lifelong companion. This way, you'll be shielded from sorrow. I've come to understand that in this world, with faith in God, hard work, and a positive mindset, you won't need any teacher, leader, or mentor. Conversely, if you lack any of these elements, you'll spend your life chasing after others.
Your quest for spirituality and meaning will continue throughout your lifetime. I've observed that matters related to religion, philosophy, and patriotism are akin to businesses—commerce, industry, and marketing. The world has never been perfect and will never be ideal in the future. Inflation, diseases, wars, and negative emotions such as hatred and prejudice will persist indefinitely. These are challenges that even great prophets couldn't entirely eliminate. Wars existed during the era of God's last messenger as well.
Crime existed in your time, and you set penalties for immoral acts. Diseases were present then, and you consistently fought against biases and animosities throughout your life. Therefore, if we want to thrive in life, we must learn to navigate through these negative aspects. We should abandon unrealistic dreams and recognize that true greatness lies in living an authentic life amid these circumstances. We should spend our seventy years of life contentedly. Pray to God and present yourself before Him, and when asked about your deeds in this world, humbly reply, "Lord, I have lived my life just as You had given it to me." I am convinced that God will say to the angels, "Well done, he has succeeded."
.jpeg)