https://arab.news/zfgac
Almost in the blink of an eye, 2025 has gone and a new year is upon us. In an age when the next gadget arrives before we have even finished reading the manual of the last, it is easy to become enamored with tomorrow’s technologies and ideas. But progress without memory is like a ship without a compass, steaming ahead without any idea where it is heading. The building blocks of our individual and collective identities are recollections and relics that tell us who we are — and explain how we became that person or that community. Without such a foundation, young people can become unmoored from their roots in an age of relentless change and mobility.
Take, for instance, an old family photograph, possibly dog-eared at the corners. To a young viewer, it might seem like a simple image of a moment captured in the blink of an eye. But to those who know the background, the photo is much more than that. It could very well be a parent’s youth in black and white, a grandmother’s smile before age silenced it, a living room where generations gathered for meals and celebrations, or a reunion of relatives or friends who have long passed on. The photo is evidence that the individuals who posed for it not only existed but also loved, laughed and enjoyed life.
