Modern life should not let us forget loved ones

Sometimes I wish I could pull my eyeballs away from my computer screen and from all those social networking websites. I can’t. Feeling attached to them has made me accustomed to speaking the language of the online world and forget the real spoken word.

I don’t tweet much. Still, messages of congratulations, birthday wishes, engagements and whatnot are more often plastered across websites like Twitter and Facebook than given in person for many of us.

In the past four years Ramadan has lost a bit of its flavour as it no longer brings family together at the table in my house. Qatayef, a sweet crepe filled with cheese or nuts served during Ramadan, no longer tastes the same to me. We no longer sit on the floor and share daily experiences. We’re a bunch of individuals living in a hotel. Why? Because each one of us is sitting at a corner tapping on our computer.

There has been a noticeable decline in the number of people who go and knock on someone else’s door to give a simple greeting, especially in Ramadan. Neighbours used to come just an hour before iftar to offer us home-cooked meals. Now even that number has reduced like an ink running out in a pen.

Both the holy book of Islam, the Quran, and the narrations of the Prophet Mohammed educate us about strengthening our family ties, yet with the pace of the changes around us we often forget the importance of saying a simple “Asalaam Alaikum” (“Peace be upon you”). Getting more involved with technology has somehow affected the way I stay in touch with the people I love.

I am at fault here too. I have become very reliable on the social media that is bombarding our nation. Knowing that I can send a message on Facebook saying “Ramadan Kareem” seems a lot easier than making a phone call or getting out of the house to do so.
 

 The day before Ramadan started, my Dad handed me his telephone to speak to an extended relative. I giggled out of nervousness – I don’t giggle much – because I did not know what to say other than: “Hello, how are you?”

I vividly recall how a few years ago I would run to the phone to be the first one who makes “the” phone call to my friends and spend hours talking and my Mum would ask me to hang up. That hasn’t happened in a while.

Although Ramadan is all about forgiveness and creating stronger ties with family, friends and neighbours, I feel that social media is ruling our lives more and more as the days pass and that has caused more separation among people.

We all need to get up and be more personal the next time we communicate. Eid will be here in a couple of weeks, so instead of broadcasting our messages through social networks, let us at least pick up a phone and say “Asalaam Alaikum” and “Eidkum Mubarak”, if not visit our families and friends to begin with.

By Amna Al Haddad

*Orginally appeared in The National Newspaper, click here

Phone-craze among kids affects health and social skills

BB in hand. Eyes on the device with an all-focused mindset while texting using the BB messenger. Writing a text that seems very important and cannot wait few minutes before sending it off.
The message reads: "dfjefjldldlkd" and the sender is only 6-year-old.


You've probably walked past a kid with a phone and never thought twice of the risks. You have probably witness kids as young as five with blackberries, smartphones and high-end mobile phones. It's not surprise in our day and time. Recent studies in the US say in every 5 children, one obtains a mobile phone.

It was reported here that in the UAE kids as young as seven can sign contracts with some telecom providers given their parents permission. Once I had found out such information and noticed the craze among the young, although it may seem cool and harmless at times, I knew there are risks. Other than the health risks associated, social risks are also in jeopardy. According to a doctor in dubai, he said:

"Use of mobile phones affects children more than adults because their brain is more sensitive to radio frequency and can damage their neuron cells,” said Dr Shabeer Nellikode, a neurologist at Lifeline Hospital in Abu Dhabi.


Kids often nag on their parents saying they want phones and a lot of times the reason why parents succumb to their kids nonsense is because they need the kids to get off their back and have them stop nagging. Leaving the kids with mobile phones can truly be disastrous on children social skills. Once they have learned to communicate to people through texting, IMing - and whatnot such devices bring, it can cause kids to lack the right communication skills in real life and heavily depend on "gadgets" to make them send a message.

The reason why children are becoming increasingly engaged in wanting such devices is because of the reason that a lot of their peers do have such devices. By not having it, it can cause bullying, being ridiculed and laughed at for not obtaining a mobile phone.

Do you think owning a mobile phone as young as five is okay? Why or why not? What risks are associated with such gadget in the hands of a child?

Fasting won't come in the way of training

When Ramadan came a few days ago, most of us ditched our daily norms, from eating, drinking, swearing, not listening to music and whatnot. Still some of us still had the strength to exercise through Ramadan.

Reading this article reported in The National about the the 21-year-old Emirati brings joy to my face and I very much relate to him. I may not be an athlete - well, yet anyway - but weight training is a must-do in my life and missing a session drives me to my wits.

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As Mr Khalid said: 

“If I relax and just start eating, I will get a big stomach. I can’t just have huge meals all month and sleep and eat until the end of the month,” 

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The  sames goes for me, too. If I stop training, all my hard work will go with no avail and that is such a depressing thought. Still, finding a way to tiptoe between the aspect of fasting and exercise is not an easy as it takes a lot of effort.


If you have ditched your training - I assure you there is a way to get back to it, despite the hurdles. Put your sports shoe on and give it a run ;)