Mistakes as Lessons for Life

Dear listeners and beloved children, I am very happy to be connected with you through the game and song programme.

Dear friends, you are listening to the game and song programme from Radio Voice of Life, and I warmly welcome you to your programme, which is the game and song show, and I thank you, dear children, for allowing us to be guests in your homes through this programme.

As usual, I will introduce myself. I am Sara, and I am Ibrahim, and I welcome you to the first part of this beautiful programme.

Maryam, what are you doing? Did you wash your hands? Yes, I am washing them again until [unclear text]—oh, clearly I can manage myself.

Yes, I am washing my hands with flowers. I can wash my hands very nicely.

Yes, I am bringing Khala Jan's Sitara, because today we are going to play. Oh, Sitara hasn’t come alone; let's go get permission from her mother.

Let’s bring Sitara. No, Maryam says it will be late. Look, it’s getting dark outside. Oh, she is right; mother said that when it gets dark, children should not go outside anymore.

Oh, Sitara's mother also might want her home because Sitara is alone in their house.

Oh, her neighbours might want her back, but she still has to go.

Yes, I see all of Maryam's concerns. How are you doing? It’s not going to work out like that.

Oh, like you said, see, this is how it should be done. Here, make a little window for her. Hit it with this stick.

Maryam, let’s go home; it’s very cold.

Yes, let’s wash our hands. She is right; look how our hands got full of dirt. Now our hands are clean.

Maryam, look, Afsham, why don’t you come home? Oh, I’ve come, mother dear.

Oh, Afsham, Sitara’s mother left, and you and I were busy playing; we didn’t even notice when she left.

About twenty minutes ago, she left while you were busy playing in the corner, so you didn’t even know.

Oh, mother dear, you’re right. Mother, what are you cooking for her? I am making rice and potatoes for her. Is that good?

Mother dear, I really like rice and potatoes, but the last time you cooked them, they were very delicious. This time, make sure to cook them nicely, dear girl.

Maryam, let’s peel the potatoes together, okay?

Banafsha, oh, I’m coming. By the way, Maryam, how many chocolates have you eaten? Why Banafsha?

Yes, can’t you eat chocolates? People eat chocolates, but not too much. You can’t eat that many.

Mother, you said you ate a lot of chocolates, dear girl. If you eat too many chocolates, they will spoil your teeth. Eating too many chocolates is not good.

Mother dear, that time when I ate too many sweets, I felt sick, and I forgot about that, as it seems to Banafsha.

That time it was sweets, but this time it’s chocolates, well, that’s fine.

Mother dear, several times you’ve told me not to eat too many chocolates because it’s harmful. Even in the Holy Book, it says that if you eat too much honey, you might get sick and vomit.

Mother dear, what does that mean? It says in the Holy Book that even sweet and lovely things like honey should not be eaten too much, because if you eat too much, your body will feel uncomfortable, and chocolates are like honey.

You should only eat a little to enjoy it and stay healthy.

Mother dear, well, I didn’t eat much. In one minute, I ate three chocolates. You say that’s too much?

One should learn from their mistakes, Maryam dear, but you didn’t eat three at once. So I won’t eat that anymore, my dear girl. You’re right, but the time you ate too many sweets, you got sick.

So you should be careful not to overindulge in anything.

Yes, mother dear, I won’t eat too much anymore.

Beautiful children, you should listen carefully to your mother and father, and be smart and respectful.

Now, dear children, let’s listen to the next part of the programme together.

Hello, our sweet and lovely friends. Good morning to you all; I hope today has been a very good day for you.

Hello, my dear brothers and sisters. Thank God for giving us the opportunity today to have a programme with you.

Yes, dear friends, today we will learn many wonderful things together until the end of the programme, so you sweet children should stay with us.

Well, dear children, what game are you playing today? What games have you played?

My dear friends and Banafsha, we played a flower game. My friends said they wanted to make a house, but it turned into something else.

Dear children, do you ever play like us and Banafsha?

If you’ve played a flower game, then you know how much fun playing can be.

Oh, Maryam dear, it can’t be fun to play outside because the weather has turned cold.

Oh, Banafsha, you’re right. We should stay in and play with our toys today.

Yes, Maryam dear, we should stay in so that God forbid, we don’t get sick.

Well, Maryam, what do you think we should talk about today? I don’t know, Banafsha, but we should choose a good topic to discuss so we can learn something nice.

Today, Maryam, how about we talk about learning from our mistakes? It means when we make a mistake, we should learn from it and not repeat it.

That’s a very good topic. Remember the day I ate chocolates, and you told me that we should learn from our mistakes and not make them again?

Oh, look, here come our parents. Welcome!

Hello, hello, my sweet and lovely children. I hope you are all well. It’s great to have another programme with you today.

Hello, dear children and sweets. Welcome to your programme. Today, sit close to your radio so that you can learn something very good.

Mother dear, today we want to talk about learning from mistakes. What do you think?

Oh, learning from mistakes is a very good topic for the sweet children to understand that when they make a mistake, they should learn from it and not repeat the same mistake.

Yes, sweet children, I had a day when I ate too many sweets and felt sick. Today, when I was eating chocolates, Banafsha reminded me that if I eat too many, I might get a sore throat and a toothache.

Oh, sweet children, if you ever make a mistake, you should not repeat it.

Yes, dear parents, because learning from mistakes is an important part of growth and progress. These mistakes help us to learn from them and to understand better things.

Father, can you tell us how to learn from our mistakes? What a good question, my daughter.

The first step is to accept your mistakes. Denying mistakes prevents us from thinking about our good actions.

Father, does that mean when we make a mistake, we should accept that we did wrong?

Yes, my dear, it’s very important to admit our faults. We should acknowledge that we did something wrong.

Oh, yes, father. So when we make a mistake, we should think about it and understand that we made a mistake.

Oh, Maryam dear, like the last time when I hit my head with a pen. But when mother told me that was a mistake, I realised it was wrong and I shouldn’t do it again.

Oh, you didn’t understand until mother told you, and then you realised and accepted it was a mistake and didn’t repeat it.

Oh, it’s very good to understand not to repeat that mistake again.

Well, dear friends, it is great that we understood this point that we should always accept our mistakes.

Maryam dear, I think when someone makes a mistake, it’s good to think about why and how that mistake happened. What was the reason behind it?

For example, when I made a mistake, I didn’t have information that it was wrong. But when I understand the reason behind my mistakes, I can prevent many future mistakes.

Exactly, sweet children, remember that next time we discuss accepting our mistakes, we learn many things about what is right and what is wrong.

And we also mentioned that if we don’t understand something, we should ask our elders whether it is correct or not.

Maryam, what do you think happens when a person makes a mistake? They should try hard not to repeat that mistake.

We also understand the consequences of our mistakes.

Oh, when someone understands the harm of a mistake, they will never repeat that mistake.

Well, father, what else can we learn from our mistakes?

What a great question, my dear girl. Another thing is that everyone makes mistakes in life; no one is without errors.

So when we make a mistake, we should not blame ourselves but learn from that mistake, think about it, and let it stay in our memory.

Yes, yes, father. Our teacher always says that making mistakes is a lesson.

Today I understand very well that making mistakes can be a lesson, meaning if we learn something from our mistakes, it can be considered a lesson.

Oh, Maryam dear, remember the last time when you wanted to skip school, and you made that mistake, and today you learned not to talk to strangers and go out.

I learned a lot of things from that.

Well, mother dear, how else can we learn from our mistakes?

My dear, we not only learn from our own mistakes but also from the mistakes of others.

For example, when someone in front of you makes a mistake, you learn from them not to make that mistake.

Oh, mother dear, we can also use the experiences of others.

For example, our teacher might say, "I made a mistake, so you try not to make that same mistake."

So, Banafsha, when we make a mistake, we should not blame ourselves or lose our way; instead, we should learn from that mistake and not repeat it.

Yes, dear sisters and brothers, today we learned many things. What about you?

Did you learn something today or not?

Yes, Banafsha, I learned many good things. I am sure that the sweet children learned many good things as well.

Today, Maryam, have you thought of something?

When a person is drawing, they make many mistakes, but they learn from those mistakes to draw better.

Oh, yes, Banafsha, in drawing, you learn that you don’t realise your mistakes until you’ve made them several times.

Maryam, there’s another thing that in the Holy Book, in the Proverbs of Solomon chapter 28, verse 13, it says, "Whoever conceals their sin does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy from God."

Amen, amen, that means in the Holy Book it says that when we make a mistake, we should confess and not repeat that mistake.

Yes, dear friends, that’s how it is. Today’s programme was about making mistakes.

When we make a mistake, we should confess our mistakes, as it is said in the Holy Book.

When we remember that we should always learn from our mistakes so that we do not repeat them.

Oh, dear brothers and sisters, when we make a mistake, we learn from it, and it should become a lesson for us.

Well, sweet children, when you make a mistake, you should think about why you made that mistake.

Oh, dear children, when you think about your mistakes, you won’t repeat them.

Dear children, I learned a lot from this part of the programme. What about you?

I am sure you also learned many good things.

Yes, dear sweet and lovely children. Now I want to ask you what you learned from this part of the programme and what was interesting to you.

Maryam and I learned a lot, and we encourage you to share what you learned with your sweet friends.

Now let’s listen to the next part of the programme together.

Mother dear, when will the story be told?

When is the story reading?

Oh, mother dear. Well, very good. I will read you a story.

First, you should tell me which story I read to you yesterday.

Mother dear, I say it all the time to Banafsha. Yesterday I read about the Angel of Ramadan who helped his friend in Ramadan.

Oh, the girl read it.

Oh, the girl read it. And this story taught us that if someone needs help, we should help them.

Today I want to tell you a story about making a kite.

Mother dear, I really enjoy making kites, but I don’t know how to play.

Well, if we both play together one day, we will learn, dear girl.

Mother dear, please read the story.

Listen to the story, my daughter.

In one of the streets of Kabul, Ali Jan and Sina lived with their families.

Ali Jan was a clever boy, but he had one problem. Whenever he made a mistake, he would feel upset and did not want to tell anyone.

Whenever his parents wanted to help him, he would lower his head and say, "No, I’ll manage it myself."

One day, Ali Jan and Sina decided to make a kite. Sina was very good at it, but Ali had never done it before.

They happily started to gather sticks, paper, and string, and made their kites.

Sina said, "Ali Jan, you need to secure the string well so the kite won’t slip from your hands." But Ali Jan, being very confident, said, "Oh, Sina, the string is secure."

That was a problem. They launched the kites, and Ali Jan was very happy.

The kite went higher and higher, but because the string wasn’t secured well, it suddenly slipped from his hand and the kite flew away.

How unfortunate.

The kite flew away from him? Oh dear, mother, because he didn’t secure the string well.

Ali Jan felt upset and returned with a sad face. Sina said, "Ali Jan, I told you to secure the string."

Ali Jan lowered his head and said, "Oh yes, I made a mistake."

When he got home, his mother saw him and asked, "What happened, Ali Jan? Why are you sad?"

Ali Jan wanted to say nothing, but then he decided to tell her the story.

He said, "Mother dear, my kite flew away. I didn’t secure the string properly."

Then what did his mother say? His mother smiled and said, "My dear, making mistakes is not a problem.

Everyone makes mistakes. What’s important is to learn from our mistakes and do better next time."

The next day, Ali Jan decided to make another kite. This time, he worked hard and secured the string tightly.

He and Sina launched the kite, and this time it flew beautifully in the sky.

Ali Jan laughed and said, "See, Sina? This time we secured the string well."

A few days later, Ali Jan had an exam. He had been quite lazy and hadn’t studied properly.

God is merciful. But when the exam started, he forgot many questions.

When the results were announced, he didn’t get a good grade and felt very upset.

Oh dear, what happened next, mother? Did Ali listen to his father?

Oh, mother, Ali thought about what his father said and decided to learn from his mistakes. In the following days, when he had more exams, he started to study properly.

This time when he took the exam, he got a very good grade. When he showed his grade to his father and mother, they proudly hugged him and said, "Look, Ali Jan, when you learn from your mistakes, you can achieve the best results."

Oh, that was wonderful, mother. It’s good that Ali learned that whenever he makes a mistake, he should learn from it.

Yes, exactly, that’s how it is.

Now let’s take from this story what we learned.

Mother dear, from this story, we learn that if we make a mistake, we should be careful and learn from our previous mistakes so that we don’t make the same mistake again.

Well done, my dear. Ali was also careful, but he learned that being careful is also important and should not be repeated.

Dear children, this story was beautiful, sweet, and educational. I learned a lot of new things, and I hope it was educational for you too.

Yes, dear children, now we will listen to the next part of the programme.

Father dear, please read us another story from the Holy Book.

You want me to read a story? Well, very well, but first, you should tell me what yesterday’s story was.

I say, father. Father, last time we read about how the land of Israel was divided into two parts: the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah.

In the land of Israel, the kings chose wrong paths and led the people away from God.

Yes, my daughter, you remembered well. Because of that, the kingdom of Israel fell, and during one period, a wicked king named Ahab ruled in Israel.

He and his wife Jezebel worshipped a god named Baal instead of worshipping God, and they encouraged the people to worship Baal as well.

During that dark time, a brave and faithful prophet named Elijah appeared to guide the people back to God and to confront the evil acts of Ahab and Jezebel.

Elijah was very upset about what Ahab and Jezebel were doing because the people had turned away from God and turned to stone and wooden idols.

One day, Elijah decided to go to Ahab and say, "Elijah bravely went to the king and said, 'O king, because you are making the people worship Baal instead of God, the Lord has decided to close the heavens, and it will not rain for this land. There will be a severe drought.'"

Ahab laughed at Elijah’s words and mocked him, meaning the king did not believe that Elijah was telling the truth.

Just as Elijah had said, the land became dry, and there was no rain; the land became thirsty, and no plants or crops grew.

A severe famine fell upon the land of Israel, and the people suffered from hunger and thirst for three years.

Ahab and Jezebel became furious with Elijah, and Jezebel ordered her guards to search for Elijah everywhere and capture him.

But God was protecting Elijah and hid him from the guards.

Elijah lived in a remote and hidden place, but he always knew that…

Father, how much did God help the people of Israel? But they still turned away from Him?

Oh, my dear, during that time, Ahab and Jezebel still prayed to Baal and asked him to send rain, but there was no sign of rain.

The people no longer had hope in Baal and slowly realised that the idols had no power.

What happened then, father? Did they return to God?

Oh, my daughter, thirty years passed, and God told Elijah, "Now is the time to go to Ahab and show him who the real God is."

Elijah went to the king and said, "O king, I want to show you and the people that there is only one God, and He is the great and merciful Lord."

Elijah suggested to Ahab that they hold a contest on Mount Carmel. He said, "Gather all the prophets of Baal, and I will come alone.

We will each prepare a sacrifice and pray that our God sends fire from heaven. Whoever can burn their sacrifice is the true God."

The king and the prophets of Baal accepted this suggestion and gathered on Mount Carmel.

The prophets of Baal prayed from morning until evening and asked Baal to send fire. But nothing happened.

No fire came, and the sacrifice remained untouched. It was Elijah’s turn, and he prepared his sacrifice and even poured a lot of water on the sacrifice and around it.

He did this to show that this work is not done by human hands but by praying humbly to ask God to send fire.

Father, what happened next? Did God send fire?

Oh, my daughter, fire came down from heaven and completely burned Elijah’s sacrifice.

The people were astonished at this sight and shouted, "Yahweh is the true God! Yahweh is the true God!"

They understood that Elijah was right, and only the true God can command the earth and the heavens.

Ahab and Jezebel, seeing this event, had nothing to say.

The people realised who the true God was and turned away from the idols of Baal.

Oh, thank God. It’s so good that the people returned to God again.

Oh, my daughter, what do you think is the lesson from this story?

This story reminds me that even when others go wrong, we should trust in God and understand that He is always with us and His power is greater than anything.

Yes, dear children, this story from the Holy Book was very educational, and I learned many things I didn’t know before; I have learned from this beautiful and sweet story.

Yes, Maryam dear, I also learned a lot.

Yes, dear children, we have now reached the end of this programme. Sweet and lovely children, I commend you to God. God bless you all.