Lost Activities and their Role in Shaping our Societies

Patience, tolerance and sense of responsibility are the keys to a successful society, but somehow, they are lost on us. When I started my career as a teacher back in 1998, our society was not so lost. We had only a few children facing emotional and physical violence at home.

But as we have embraced modernity, our culture has changed drastically. The media openly promotes disturbed families and individuals.
While counselling individuals and parents I chanced upon an amazing fact, which is a prime reason for our distress and challenges. We all have witnessed our elders being involved in some skills and arts which are now long forgotten and are regarded as a waste of time. Whereas I believe they were the stitches holding our society together. Here are some activities that played a part in instilling patience and tolerance in people before us.

Embroidery:
It is a skill. The X generation used to be proud of their skills to practice different knots and stiches. They used to create some amazing decorations, bed sheets and pillow cases and other household stuff not only for themselves but also prepared it as a gift for friends and family. The girls who were good at it were famous for their skill. It not only killed time but it also developed patience and calmness in the individuals. The colorful combination of the flowers and leaves or any abstract kept them engrossed and did art therapy for them.

Knitting:
Another way to strengthen hand and mind co – ordination, and to increase the concentration span. Young girls along with their mothers or grandmothers used to practice this skill. It not only gave them a meaningful activity to engage in but it also strengthened their relationship with their elders. The peaceful environment calmed the souls and nourished their tranquility. It gave them patience to be engaged in one task for a longer period of time, secondly, the sense of achievement and the continuous effort to do and redo the task gave them the understanding of how to keep on trying and never give up.

Gardening:
Mothers and grandmothers, while peeling fruits and vegetables used to sow the seeds and peels in the pots or seed beds. Then the children used to water them with the grandfathers or their mothers and observed the entire life cycle. The family did not only enjoy fresh vegetables and fruits but the neighbors exchanged their bounties with each other. The children used to be tempted by the sight of the fruits but they were told to be patient so the fruit could ripe. It was a long and slow process that nurtured patience. During the entire process they also got a chance to observe some different bugs and insects. This whole process developed awe of Allah in them.

Indoor Games:
The luxury of living together and among big families gave children an opportunity to play lots of games like ghar ghar – that prepared both girls and boys for the challenges and responsibilities of the future life.

Guddae Gurria ki Shadi – trained young girls to be organized. Gave them an opportunity to learn how to entertain guests and they learnt some simple recipes without hassles. It also gave them confidence and developed a sense of responsibility.

Board games – The problem of electricity failures was not very painful in those days as during day time, families used to be busy in board games. And nights were spent star gazing and discussing. The entire family used to be together and initiated discussions, where children got an overview of their family values. They also learnt problem-solving skills after hearing about family stories and incidents.

Our failure in maintaining a peaceful interaction between adults and children is a major cause of the turmoil existing in the world. We all are responsible for raising sensible, caring and wise children, so we must take some quick actions or we will be a major source of a major social decline!

-Humaira Salman