Battles of our Gen Z
AS it is graduation season, may I share a message recently delivered before college students in Marawi City?
We stand to congratulate the future workforce of our community and society.
Your generation is gifted with the internet. It is a blessing but can also have a negative impact. Feelings of insecurity can arise from seeing online images that define what is trending or popular. The Chinese online gamer Fatcat took his own life because of depression. Indeed, we should look out for our mental health to fight heartache and peer pressure.
And also, remind yourselves to read books, converse with your parents and experience the outside world.
Physical health must also be highlighted. We must confront the more serious battles that can plague us and debilitate our being — disease and illness.
Many of our fellow Meranao cultural community will not be able to live beyond 50 years old. They will suffer from many diseases, according to Brother Doctor Alexis who works at the Amai Pakpak Medical Center. I know that the top illnesses, such as liver disease and gastroenteritis, stem from the sources that affect our drinking water, for instance.
Diseases can then easily be preventable if we follow a consciously healthy lifestyle.
An Islamic saying or hadith reminds us that we are stewards (of the earth). Purification is faith. And Allah likes the tayyiban — beautiful, pure and healthy.
Sadly, our forests are becoming bald, our solid waste is not disposed of properly, and our water is contaminated. This affects our well-being, the air that we breathe, our digestive systems. When waste is left exposed for two to three days, microorganisms and bacteria could breed that cause diseases such as Hepatitis A, dysentery, and gastroenteritis. When we are sick, we cannot work properly. So, think about it; our lifestyles that consume much junk food and new things, after which we throw and contribute to the mountains of garbage.
This summer, let us revisit our old ways, our organic and herbal systems and teach them to our families.
When we kneel in prayer, we raise our finger to the Almighty Allah. Please share a commitment and place your finger on your chest. Please recite with me: I commit to protect myself, my parents and the Earth.
Michael Jackson reminded us to “heal the world, make it a better place, for you and for me and the entire human race.” May we work toward this to ensure our survival.