I was born into a family in Afghanistan as the first daughter. My mother wanted a daughter because she had given birth to a son before me. My parents loved me and provided everything I needed and there was an atmosphere of friendship and cordiality in our family. Everyone respected each other and tried to make each other happy. Problems occurred sometimes, but passed.
I got married at age twenty-one and I love my husband and my children. I am the mother of six: I have two daughters and four sons. Our little house is always full of love and compassion.
For me, family is the fundamental social group in society. Typically consisting of one or two parents and their children, families share goals and values, have long-term commitments to one another, and usually live together; all the members of a household under one roof, a group of people sharing common ancestry.
I think family members and their support are a kind of wealth in human life. When we face problems in our lives, we can share them with family members. Family members can cope with problems together.
It’s sad when I see people who are using drugs or suffering and who have lost their hopes. On those times I think of their family members, and I wonder: Do they have family, do they have homes? Why are they doing these crimes?
Oh my God, I suffer when I see the addicted and homeless people. Some of them chose addicted people as friends; some suffer from depression and are hopeless from life. Maybe there was cheating by a spouse, a failed love, or mental illness.
In many families in Afghanistan if someone uses drugs then other family members become addicted. I think one major cause of addiction is in the household. For example, domestic violence in a family is a bad environmental influence on teenagers and could lead to drug use. But if they have family, then the family member can bring them to the hospital or find a way to bring them back.
Treatment for addicts depends partly on the family structure. Their family members should provide help and support to each other. If they do not help there is no way to force them to, but then government organizations and NGOs can step in.
One of the problems with people using drugs is that addicts often keep away from their own family and society. Slowly, they often lose the support of family members. But family members need to be with them and find ways to help them to resume normal lives.
The family is the fundamental form in a society. I believe humans can often fight the big challenges in our lives using our own knowledge. If we can’t solve the challenges and find the resolutions ourselves, we can share them with our family members. The parents’ efforts in the upbringing and education of their children have a positive role in creating a healthy community, and a good and kind society.
Photo from The Majalla: A mother smokes heroin with her son and daughter in Kabul.