I am 13, a grade VIII student at a reputable local school. Last week, I accompanied my father to a mobile phone vendor. While my father was busy defining mobile phone issues to the counter boy, I overheard a conversation between another customer and a sales boy.

A grey-haired man in his late fifties was insisting the boy to teach him some operating skills of a smartphone.

“My children are abroad and I am having difficulties communicating with them, kindly let me know how to use this phone,” he earnestly asked the boy. In an astonishingly rude tone, the boy’s reply baffled me.

He said “Chacha, this is the age of advancement, times have changed.You just stick to remembering Allah, as using this phone is not easy.”

While keeping his cool, theold man just asked the boy, “Don’t you have any elders in your family? Is this the way you speak to them?” and he started to leave.

My father and some other customers also listened to this argument and to my satisfaction, a young lady admonished the counter boy for his rude comments to an elderly man and politely offered to explain the functions to him.

On my way back home, I kept trying to analyse the attitude of that young boy towards that elderly person. I realised the meaning of a piece of writing I have gone through about comparative studies.

According to that “the comparative studies are a powerful tool to understand how human life has changed over time. They allow us to compare different aspects of human societies, cultures and behaviours across different historical periods and regions. By doing so, we can identify the factors that have influenced human evolution and adaptation, as well as the challenges and opportunities that humans have faced throughout history.

“To understand the main benefits and limitations of comparative studies, and how they can help us appreciate the diversity and complexity of human life, first we must understand its importance.”

Let’s start by exploring how we can relate to our own generation. We are living in a technologically advaned age, but we often forget the struggles made by our parents who didn’t have such conveniences.

We live in a time when the world is more connected than ever before. Unlike previous generations, who had to rely on landline phones, post offices and telegrams for official or personal communication, we have access to a variety of digital technologies that enable us to communicate across borders and cultures. This has created a global village, where people can share ideas, information and experiences with ease.

Our forefathers faced many challenges in their daily lives, but they did not let that stop them from making extraordinary achievements. They excelled in various fields, from education to arts, and left a legacy for us to follow. We owe them gratitude and respect for laying the foundation of our future. We should honour them by continuing their work and striving for excellence in everything we do.

We should not take their efforts for granted or look down upon them. That would be disrespectful and ungrateful. We should acknowledge and appreciate it that they adapted to changing times and made the best of their situation.

As time goes by, we will grow old along with the technology and the facilities that we are proud of. Someday, our descendants, too, will belittle us as outdated and irrelevant. When that happens, we will tell ourselves that now the boot is on the other foot.

Published in Dawn, Young World, December 2nd, 2023