Flowers for the Women Wearing Veils - Volume I — Page 183
! ! 183 when other ch ildren we re st opped from going out in the heat, they must have felt the same way as I did in my childhood, simply because children do no t mind these things. Therefore, a child does not fee l the pain of hard work that an adult does. Due to His inevitable wisdom, God Almighty has desensitized children which is why they are not as reluctant in working hard when practicing anything. If a child works hard when he is young , it leaves an enormous impact upon him when he is grown. However, if he never makes the effort as a child, he will experience great difficulty when he is grown. ! I happen to know three people, who cannot properly sit in the Tashahhud position during Salāt , because they were not made to practice it correctly in their childhood. N obody ever corrected them , or it went unnoticed by those who were meant to guide them , and now that they are grown, they cannot sit correctly. Out of these three, two are very sincere Ahmadis , while one does not belong to our Jama'at. Now, if they hope to try and sit properly in the Tashahhud pos ition, they cannot do so. Consequently , due to a child’s nature at this stage , childhood is a special time. I f a child is made to practice something, he can accomplish things more easily. ! However, if in childhood , they pick up harmful habits such as tel ling lies, stealing, etc. , then no matter how they are lectured or counseled , reasoned with or censured , they will remain entangled in such habits, despite knowing them to be wrong. I have seen people lie and then [remorsefully] weep afterwards over their m istake. Th ey will steal and then show remorse over it, realizing their m istake s and admitting to them , as well as making amends, but still they cannot stay away from the habit of stealing. The habits of childhood stay with them forever, unless God wills, with few exceptions. Therefore, we should inculcate excellent moral values in c hildren during their childhood. T his will safeguard the moral values of future generations. It is this lack of moral training in childhood that some sincere and pious people inadvertently blurt out foul language. There are certain writers who are very sincere , but despite being cautious, their pen will let slip harsh language and when they are advised of this, they will firmly