In 2029...

Arts & Culture Culture, Arts, Literature & Linguistics
1

… where do you see yourself? Predictions and assumptions are just that, predictions and assumptions and only One Being knows the future. i realize that, thank you.

From childhood, we’ve had objectives, goals, and dreams. i started off wanting to be a judge (don’t ask why), career-wise i changed my mind many times until i was around 19. That was when i KNEW what i wanted to do with my life. A quarter-century from today, it will be 2029. Those of us currently in our 20s, will be in our 40s. Where do you think you will be at that time and what do you think you will be doing ?

i’ve been thinking of this question over the past few days; these are some of the indicators you can use to answer this question:

  • location
  • status - single/married [duh - i know everyone’s going to say ‘oh i’ll be married by 2029 for sure’, but - that may or may not be accurate for everyone; some people may choose not to get married]
  • financially
  • job-wise, do you think you will have the job you want?
  • religiously - will you be more or less religiously inclined, do you think?

i am putting this in the Culture forum because in my mind it’s a sociologically-inclined discussion…meaning basically, i want a holistic answer. Don’t just say - ‘i’ll be married and living in 3 bedroom house with a white picket fence’. What are your current objectives and do you think you will have them achieved by 2029? Which objectives have you prioritized? If you don’t get the career you want, is that more important for you than not having, say, deepening religious faith by 2029?

Basically, if you were to take a time machine and do an Isaac Asimov and travel to 2029, where do you think you would see yourself and what do you think you would see yourself doing with your life? Which objectives are MOST important to you to have fulfilled by that specific time period?

2

nadz..i honestly have NO idea...zilch...coz u never know whats gona happen in the future...i dont even think abt it much coz the future is soooo uncertain...bas Allah behtri karay

before i used to have the picture of 'my ideal future' in my mind..now i've even let go of that coz then it'll just make me compare and might make me ungrateful if things dint turn out like that...i've just tried to make myself as open and receptive to whatever happens in the future and wherever Allah swt takes me...and i try to make myself be mentally prepared for the worst...

ive pretty much stopped thinking too much ahead into the future, all i know is what my major next move in life should be in the next couple months so i can prepare for it...like right now i'm thinking abt grad school...and thats it...us ke ilawa, everything else will happen as Allah wishes and i got no control over it...

waise bhee zada sochna sehet k lyay acha nai hota innit :D

[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Nadia_H: *
What are your current objectives and do you think you will have them achieved by 2029? Which objectives have you prioritized? If you don't get the career you want, is that more important for you than not having, say, deepening religious faith by 2029?

[/QUOTE]

hmm...yaar my objective was and is just to be a better Muslim nadz..i think that encapsulates everything...i dont care abt the career bit that much...as long as everyone around me is happy and life is passing by smoothly...

3

I see myself either dead or if I am alive.

All warm locations please God!

Married happily - God willing

Stable financially - God willing

job-wise- insha’Allah considering my steps in the career, i think i can, i think i can!

Religiously - Ana Qalbi (I’m ever fluctuating), but insha’Allah there will be more knowledge seeked and added and used.

Current objectives are to study and attain a degree higher than your ordinary Bachelors. After that, is strictly and respectively religion, family and career.

If I were to see myself in 2029, I better have all my hair and age like a nice wine :hehe: For real though, just at peace with a roof over my head and my family is quite alright. Lot more to add but digging this deep into the future can also work backwards so I’ll leave it here :slight_smile:

You tell me Nadia, all of the above, apply to yourself. Where will you be?

p.s. folks will be hesitant to answer cuz this is really really personal and digging deep into their lives.

4

I don’t even want to think about it.

:bummer:

5

Irem,

sigh i hear ya.

When i was in highschool i used to have an ideal future-wala scenario too. Slowly as i got older, courtesy of life, i got a few kicks in the noggin to set me straight :smiley: Whenever i contemplate this issue, i always say “Insha’Allah” in my mind. Nothing in life is ever certain.

i can’t help it, though, i sometimes still harbor expectations. um not so much personal ones now, more career-oriented and religious ones (Insha’Allah). Khair, like you said… Allah behtar karay, that’s seriously all i want now.

Masha’Allah. You are lucky you have that type of perception of peace…With everything that’s going on in the world today, i don’t think life will ever pass smoothly for the majority. i also want to be a better Muslim, you are probably right - that encapsulates everything.

CocoNut, :slight_smile:
>>All warm locations please God!<<
haha! You Torontonians don’t know the meaning of cold. tsk tsk. +10 degrees nahin hota and you guys start complaining all over the news that it’s too cold. Come to the west, yaar. You aren’t a true Canadian until you’ve shovelled snow in -30 weather without a toque :~D
>>Married happily - God willing. Stable financially - God willing. job-wise- insha’Allah considering my steps in the career, i think i can, i think i can!<<
Regarding the job - you can, Insha’Allah. Believe me, you definitely can.

Regarding the rest - i know you will get it all, CocoNut. Good things come to those who wait. But remember, waiting is mandatory…nothing that is genuinely good has ever spontaneously dropped out of the heavens for anyone.
>>Religiously - Ana Qalbi (I’m ever fluctuating), but insha’Allah there will be more knowledge seeked and added and used.<<
We ALL fluctuate.
>>Current objectives are to study and attain a degree higher than your ordinary Bachelors. After that, is strictly and respectively religion, family and career.<<
i see. You answered my prioritizing question. Thank you.

Yes you are right this is very personal. Part of the reason i didn’t answer it myself.

hm. i see myself, Insha’Allah, gathering more knowledge about Islam.. i don’t mean to copy your words, but that’s similar to how i would have phrased it. Seeking knowledge about Islam every single day of my life. i know i will not reach perfection, but Insha’Allah i WILL make progress. Insha’Allah.

hm. Geographically - i definitely do not want to see myself living in Canada. i love this country, but i don’t want to die here. i see myself living far away from almost everyone i currently know, probably some remote village in Africa, Insha’Allah, working for a local-based NGO, surrounded by the kids i work with. i’ll be one of those crazy desi ladies you occasionally hear horror stories about - lolz… then you can say, ‘hey i knew her - she used to bug me on msn’ :stuck_out_tongue: i’ll be making a handful of pennies per month (aur wo bhi if i’m lucky). Roof over my head (preferably one that doesn’t leak), shoes on my feet, decent clothes to wear, a laptop (so i can keep in touch with family members - i know my Abbu will buy me one :o ), a closeby masjid… hey i’ll be set for life Insha’Allah.

Seriously every Torontonian should live in Iqualuit for at least two weeks in January :~P Then you guys won’t complain of your +10 degree weather :smiley: If we get +10 here, it means it’s time for a bbq.

Little Human, :frowning: You don’t have to tell me, don’t write it out in this thread. Just fikar not yaar :hug: Sorry, i didn’t mean to say anything negative.

6

I'm 2029, I'll be 50 and inshallah, will be alive and healthy.

  • location

I don't know really. Preferably somewhere warm, that has mountains on one side, the ocean on the other side and palm trees in between.

  • status - single/married

Hopefully happily married, but with the way things are going, who knows if that is even a reality for me. :D

  • financially

Comfortable. I don't have any desire for extreme luxuries like convertibles or living in a mansion, but do want to be comfortable.

  • job-wise, do you think you will have the job you want?

I really don't know if I'll be working. Will leave it at that.

  • religiously - will you be more or less religiously inclined, do you think?

I hope to be more spiritual. I want to learn more about Islam and actually become better in my practice of it. At the same time, there are a lot of other things I want to learn that cannot be taught in any educational institution. Will leave it at that.

We're only here for a little while. I will be 25 in June and feel like I have accomplished very little. There has got to be more to life than studying, working and then getting married.

Anyway, in the words of Coconut Uncle, I want to age like fine wine ... the expensive kind that is $1000 a bottle.

7

aw Mehnaz. :flower1:

Lately i have been finding, more and more, that there are so many things that an educational institution cannot teach. i have learned knowledge from university, but not wisdom.

Insha’Allah.

>>I don’t know really. Preferably somewhere warm, that has mountains on one side, the ocean on the other side and palm trees in between.<<
i guess the palm trees rules out Canada then ?

>>Hopefully happily married, but with the way things are going, who knows if that is even a reality for me.<<
:flower1:

>>There has got to be more to life than studying, working and then getting married.<<
i’ve been thinking the same thing sometimes.

**
haha :smiley:

8

Well, I guess that by then you’ll be a big human :mocking:

Anyway:

  • location - London area, UK
  • status - single/married - married with 2-3 kids, inshallah
  • financially - Comfortable enough to be able to afford to send all my children to good schools and universities, and to be able to provide their needs
  • job-wise, do you think you will have the job you want? - Inshallah.. I’d basically like to be working for this same company by that time. I like it here :slight_smile:
  • religiously - will you be more or less religiously inclined, do you think? - I’d like to hope that I’ll be more religious by then :frowning:
9

Re: In 2029…

  • location
  • Difficult to say, but hopefully Southern California

  • status - single/married
    -married insha-allah, with 3 kids, probably be a fat uncle with thick glasses

  • financially
    -comfortable to well to do inshallah. I hope to have a nice lifestyle, with proper financial planning, but not to the point where everything is in excess

  • job-wise, do you think you will have the job you want?
    -I hope to have a management postition within a mid-size to large consulting firm, but at the end of the day, having a job and being able to provide for my family is what matters.

  • religiously - will you be more or less religiously inclined, do you think?
    -Definitley hope to be more religious. By 2029 I hope to have gone for Haj and performed Umrah several times..I think the biggest thing about the future that bothers me is my children, if I am blessed by Allah(swt). With the values and morality eroding fast as time goes on( specifically the US), I wonder how will my children turn out. At the end of the day we can always say it depends on the parents, but also there is so much a parent can do. Kids spend more time away from home then they do at home. Their biggest influence seems to be anything but the parents..so I will inshallah do my part as a parent, but I cant follow them all day either :bummer:

10

As long as I am healthy and can support my family, then its all good. Material things can only go so far, sometimes you just have to be content. Whatever difficulties come along are all part of life.

About religion, If Im still more or less the same, Id feel as if Ive wasted my whole life. If I havent learnt more about islam and started practicing it, then when will it happen?

11

ofcourse all of this is ideally wala stuff. things rarely work according to plan and im okay with that.

location:

pakistan.. inshallah. hopefully a researcher with my own research center and cool robots walking around me.

status:

married, with 4 kids, 2 boys and 2 girls. i also have the order in mind, but i doubt i can make decisions like that on my own.

financially:

not a business tycoon necessarily, but enough for me to live like i do, without ever looking at my bank balance. ofcourse these days this lands me in trouble, but then, i'd have my robots robbing banks and stuff. kids should expect the best of education but very miserly inheritance.

religiously:

hopefully practicing by then instead of all talk.

job wise:

see location. im definitely pretty set in my ways right now to know what i'd eventually become should i become anything. a good decent researcher, hopefully with a turing award or two :).

12

In 2029 I hope to be healthy, wealthy and wise...

As for seeing myself, hmmm...The picture is quite blurry, because 10 years ago I saw myself as something else (a famous musician actually), but now the reality is different, so the older I get, the more blurry the future becomes...Probably because as we grow older, our expectations get a lot more realistic and we learn to take things one day at a time...Not like before where we wanted to be an astronaut or a super human when we grew up...

As for my wish as to what I should want to be, well, I would love to be a married man with kids and a couple of Pulitzer prize winning books published under my belt, InshAllah...

But I have to ask you, why specifically did you chooe 2029 as the year in which to see ourselves in? I mean why not like 2030 or 2025? But it's for a fact that a person born in 1979 would be exactly 50 years old in 2029...

13

Dead from substance abuse.

14

i'll answer from home inshallah, my work pc is rather mentally/technically disturbed...

15

Old, really really old. Mom says shes not going to get me married so in the year 2029 I will be a lazy bum sitting on my coach getting fatter and older. Life sucks.

16

mad_scientitst why don’t you say you’ll become sane :snooty:

:stuck_out_tongue:

Nadia things are too unpredictable, one lesson I learnt in life is that I shouldn’t have umeedan, chotee ya baree. Thus I wouldn’t want to think what happens next year even.
Yeh na ho kay I will be crushed again.

:slight_smile:

17

*location
I will probably retire in Miami Florida at my son/daughter’s mansion. I won’t be bugging him/her too much cuz he/she will be playing tennis grand-slams all year long…World #1 baby

  • status - single/married
    I’ll probably be married to a very sweet woman…or it ain’t gonna happen :-p..but the grand-slam dream remains put!

  • financially
    I’m studying/working my butt off right now so I’m sure I will be financially stable by 2029 …Its all planned Marge. (Homer simpson style)

  • job-wise, do you think you will have the job you want?
    I will have my own business instead…I’m too desi to work for someone else for too long :hoonh:

  • religiously
    errr…I will start working on that once tomorrow… :hehe:

18

Re: In 2029...

  • location - Gerrard St.
  • status - divorced twice - third potential victim in sight
  • financially - will have won the lottery three times, so do the math
  • job-wise - local mafia head
  • religiously - hardcore scientologist

Sorry, Nadia, just couldn't resist it. :)

19

:hehe: ^

think of all the all u can eat at lahori tikkah u’ll be enjoying there, samb.

location: hopefully a bit warm. where? no idea.

status: happily married, 3 kids. hopefully they’ll all be in late teens.

financially: stable, enough to live in peace.

job-wise: dont know really. maybe i guess.

religiously: hopefully more spiritual.

20

Thanks everyone for your responses. i was honestly afraid this was going to be another of my failed, boring threads :bummer:

Two general trends that i was expecting exhibited themselves: the majority said they would like to be married and see themselves with children by 2029; most would like to see themselves more religiously inclined (Insha’Allah to both of those).

50-B, You are right, a parent can’t follow her/his kids around 24/7. So the entire responsibility of raising a good child, can’t really fall exclusively upon the parents’ shoulders. i know really good parents who have awful kids… maybe it was their fault somewhere along the road, but the kids are adults now and should be able to think for themselves regarding the diffs between right and wrong. So it’s not always 100% the parents’ fault if the kids have turned out awful.

M, So very true. It will be a wasted life.

Lajawab, Legitimate query. Because i wanted to gauge our perceptions on where we would stand exactly 25 years from today. It wasn’t based upon the year of anyone’s birth (which would vary from one guppy to the next). It was just based on 25 years from today which is uniform for everyone because everyone would then get the same amount of time to try to attain their objectives. Of course this is assuming that the people who responded in this thread are in their 20s to begin with and not aged 15 or something.

WM, :konfused: Probably working in the nuclear or maybe aero. industry of Pakistan.

Little Human, i think true, to a certain extent :flower1: i felt so sad to read that.

If we don’t have SOME objectives in mind, how would we plan ahead… but i know you have your reasons for stating that and i will leave it at that with respect :flower1:

Sambrialian, lolz it’s okay. :smiley: