Life in such a digitalized and modern world has been such that tech runs supreme and ignoring each other has become a frequent trend among the “cool kids.” Yet the real people, the ones struggling for others, shouting at the top of their voices for others, the ones taking care of you time to time, be it your mother or your best friend or even a person you do not know, it is because of people like them that the modern world can hide its pessimistic sides beneath the shield of optimism.
Humanity is not defined by academic success or an apparent respect to others, but by the values nurtured inside a heart. Success and money are useful in life, but what is the use of earning such money if you do not have a life you want?
When you start stepping out of your academic era, knowing that your school life is going to end soon, these are some of the realities that hit hard. Soon enough you will be dispatched from all of your classmates, you probably will not be in the same universities with them, you might have to take a different route in life stepping into whole new world -- but it is those real ones who will always be there for you, providing you the emotional support at 3am at night when you are crying over constant declines from the uni applications.
On the other side of the coin though, I have seen people trying so hard to fit into that “cool” group but end up getting kicked out, or even the opposite, people leaving just because they found another cool group to join or just because that “uncool” person was ruining the image of their group.
It is in a crisis that the real faces of people are revealed. If they are not standing up for others, you cannot expect them to do the same for you. However, some people who do “appear heartless” aren't always heartless, because people are always dealing with all sorts of difficult situations of their own, be it due to family pressure or whatever limitations, they might not be able to show their morality and reflect upon their self taught ideals.
You cannot really judge a person until you see their contributions in real life and ultimately much knowledge and expertise in life comes from closely observing your surroundings. Most of Gen Z has managed to get out their limitations and barriers because they have been faced with the realities too early in life and that is what I believe was the right thing for our generation, to make us aware of where the greatness lies.
Humanity is not defined by academic success or an apparent respect to others, but by the values nurtured inside a heart
Students of not only our country, but also the whole world are very united in the sense that they act as a community and are ready to come forward when the nation needs them. They are ready to give their lives for justice because after all the person for whom they are fighting is probably a distant friend of theirs. That is the true friendship, these are the people who are the real heroes.
I have heard from my sister how their seniors always came forward to support their classmates in case of any urgency, how they have helped people reach their homes safely when they had felt insecure. There were people giving out bottles of water; people feeding their friends when their friends were at the urge of exhaustion; people raising voices for others, people stopping injustices with their bare arms, people giving their lives selflessly just for the sake of others.
At the same time, there were people caring only and only about their own interests when the majority had been in grief; people going on jolly tours leaving the whole community behind at the time when they needed their support the most; people refusing to help when someone’s life was at stake, closing the doors of their cruel hearts.
There were people posting about their own extravagant lives for the entire year but not a single post appreciating others, not letting others know and hear what they should know, not spreading awareness. It was them who were always selfish so as to not honour the deeds the unknown ones have been doing for them.
Life is really good at offering us unexpected things but it is also good at taking us away from our expectations and that imbalance is what most of us keep fighting for in our life.The happiest and most successful people in life were those who did hard work but also valued their lives, valued the people around them. One cannot expect respect, help, and care from others unless they do the same for others.
There is no harm in letting a flower bloom, there is no harm in making a person smile -- there is only beauty in it. Don't let things fade away like black and white, find the colours in life, find the happiness in others and the real human in yourself.
Labiba Tasnim is a student of SFX Greenherald International School.
