Spacehamster’s Blog

Stories like this always sadden me -

A TEENAGE girl’s decision to tell her father she was converting from Islam to Christianity sparked a stabbing frenzy that left her mother dead and her father critically injured.
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In Adelaide, the family’s former neighbours and workmates described a quiet and strict father and a devout and forceful mother. The parents appeared to control almost every minute of Kaihana’s life, and had decided what religion and career she would follow. “I only saw the girl a couple of times - her mother took her to school and picked her up,” said a neighbour.

“She had to be a doctor - that was the way it was,” said another neighbour who talked regularly with Dr Hussain. Yasmin Hussain’s former boss at a local Indian restaurant - where she was renowned for her Islamic sweets, work ethic and passion for cooking - said the parents “sheltered” Kaihana. The restaurant owner said Kaihana was required to come to the restaurant on holidays and when the rest of her class at local Pembroke School was on camp.

Even though my childhood was nowhere near as oppressive as Kaihan’s, I can certainly emphathise with certain elements of her upbringing. Like the tremendous pressure that family traditions and expectations can often bring. It’s not something that I’ve never really been personally comfortable with. My philosophy is that I’ll perform far better as a person in whatever endeavour I choose, without the unrelenting pressure and trauma that rigid family traditions and expectations can bring.

I’m glad that I managed to get through my childhood and teenage years mostly unscathed…mostly. I still have bitter memories about some aspects of my teenage years - but I’ve resolved not to allow those bitter dissapointments to rule the rest of my life. As one literary character said: “It takes more courage to go on living, than to just give up and die.”.

Regardless of what the real facts of the case are, I sincerely hope that Kaihana has the same chance that I did to be able to leave the ghosts of the past behind her, and accept the joys, wisdom and benefits that adulthood can bring.