The voice he can never forget..

A man was being taken from one doctor to another by his wife and children because they believed he had become mentally unstable.

When he finally sat down with one doctor, he said, “There’s nothing mentally wrong with me. But something happened that has left me deeply unsettled and disturbed.”

He began to explain.

“When I was young, my father passed away, and my mother became my only guardian. She went through unimaginable hardship to raise me, educate me, and help me build a life where I could eventually have a family of my own and provide for them.

As the years passed, my mother grew old. My wife and children found it difficult to care for her and suggested that we move her into a care home, where she would be looked after properly.

Before agreeing, my mother asked me one question: ‘Are you happy with this decision?’

I told her yes.

She simply nodded and said she would go.

At first, I visited her every day. Then it became once a week. Then once a month. Eventually, it became only once in a while.

Life became busy. I became consumed by my own responsibilities and slowly stopped making the effort.

Now, decades later, in my 60s, I found myself in the same position my mother once had.

My children asked me if I would agree to move into a care home because they could no longer look after me.

In that moment, I felt exactly what my mother must have felt all those years ago.

I felt sick to my stomach. I immediately decided I would bring my mother home and care for her myself.

But when I arrived at the care home to pick her up, the workers looked at me with sadness and said:

“She passed away two days ago…”

They told me that in her final moments, she kept asking for me.

Now, all I hear in my mind is my mother’s voice… calling my name.

Lesson to be learnt…

Parents spend their youth sacrificing their comfort so we can have a future. They stay awake when we sleep, worry when we laugh, and carry burdens we often never see. By the time we truly understand their worth, time has often already slipped away.

In Islam, the status of parents is immense. Allah places kindness to parents immediately after worship of Him, and the Qur’an reminds us not even to say “uff” to them in frustration. Jannah lies beneath the feet of the mother, and serving our parents is among the greatest acts of worship.

If your parents are still alive, cherish them while you can. Call them. Visit them. Sit with them. Listen to them.

Because one day, all that may remain is the sound of their voice in your memory.