Kashmiri Children Are Growing Up Too Fast

In a place hardened by history, even the smallest children have stopped asking silly questions. A father reflects on what's being lost.

- Dr. Shoib Ahmad Baba

"Baba, are you tired today?

My son Eesa asked me this on a routine evening. His voice was soft, but the question landed heavy. It wasn’t curiosity. It was concern. And it didn’t belong on the lips of a boy still small enough to believe in magic.

I froze. Not because he asked, but because he meant it.

When did our children grow old?

In Kashmir, childhood used to come with mud-streaked clothes, cricket on roads, snow fights in the yard, and questions like, “Why do stars twinkle?”

Now I hear children ask: “Are you okay?” “Is situation fine tomorrow?” “Why is everyone angry?”

They're still little. But their eyes have seen too much. Their voices carry a weight that shouldn't be there.

Eesa doesn't ask childish questions anymore. He watches me. He worries. He reads the silence in a room before anyone speaks. He knows when I'm hiding stress, and he carries it with me. I never asked him to. He just does. That's what scares me.