Raising Children

RAISING CHILDREN Islam teaches that one’s love for God should surpass worldly interests. One should be willing to sacrifice everything for God’s sake. We must create a nurturing atmosphere at home and foster a spiritual mindset in them along these lines. T here was a man, Malik Abdul Shakoor, who had a strong addiction to smoking. He would smoke three packets of cigarettes daily despite having countless reasons to quit, such as “Smoking is harmful to health” and “Smoking wastes your hard-earned money.” He remained stubbornly attached to his cigarettes, even declaring to his friends after having tea, “Anyone who doesn’t smoke after tea has no right to drink it.” However, a minor incident changed his perspective and made him give up his diehard habit. Whenever he discarded cigarette butts after smoking, his threeyear-old son, Farooq Qaiser, would pick them up and put them in his mouth. Despite attempts to stop him, the child would not listen. One day, when the child’s mother sternly forbade him, he responded, “But even daddy smokes.” Hearing this from his child struck a chord in Malik Abdul Shakoor. Though he would