Parenting

The way we raise our children can vary depending on many factors. Our own upbringing, cultural background, education, and region in which we live can all contribute to our parenting style. But did you know that generational trauma may also play a role?

This is a first in a series of excerpts from “The Perfect Muslim Child: A Holistic Approach to Raising a Balanced Child” by Nargis Naqvi. 

During the teenage years, our children become increasingly independent. Adolescence is a dress rehearsal to prepare for the real world – adulthood. As scary as it is, our children are growing up.

The phrase “risk-taking,” more often than not, tends to have a negative connotation attached to it. It signals the probability of experiencing harm or danger, or risk which involves failure for the individual.

This life is a test. A test we all have been struggling through. It is also the test we wish our children will get through with ease but, deep down, we know it will be a struggle for them as well. So how do we prepare them for this test? 

Allah says in the Quran: 

Part of any efforts related to strengthening family ties is about making good use of existing resources and also learning about new ones.

I was born in Puerto Rico and spent half my childhood in “La Isla del Encanto” or the enchanted island as it is called. Years later, while in the U.S., I married into a large, multigenerational Ecuadorian family.