The Narratives – Mohamed Miah

The next six months will be a test—of resilience, of stability, of identity. Not just for me, but for many people trying to hold things together while the world feels like it’s shifting beneath us.

The economic pressures are relentless. Inflation isn’t just a word in the news; it’s something you feel at the checkout, in the bills, in the quiet calculations of what can be cut back without letting anyone notice. Job security is no longer guaranteed, and with every passing month, the margin for error gets smaller. That’s why my focus is clear—work hard, keep my job stable, and make sure that, no matter what, my family doesn’t feel the impact. That’s the provider in me. The part that understands responsibility isn’t about words, it’s about actions. Taking it like a man has never meant more than it does now.

But there’s another challenge, one that isn’t just about survival—it’s about belonging. The protector in me sees what’s happening around us. Right-wing nationalism, once something we thought was on the fringes, is becoming the norm. The paranoia, the stares, the subtle shifts in tone—things feel different. The cradle of my city, the place where I was born and built my life, is starting to feel unfamiliar, as if the walls are closing in.

We’re in between a rock and a hard place. The ancestral land, the one tied to my blood, feels distant. And the country I was born in, the one I’ve called home my entire life, is making it clear that people like me are on borrowed time. It’s like being put up for adoption by a place you’ve spent years defending as your own.

So the real challenge isn’t just financial—it’s how to protect my family’s future when the ground beneath us is shifting. How to stay firm when everything around us is trying to push us out. How to prepare for a reality where being British and being seen as belonging here aren’t necessarily the same thing.

Six months from now, I’ll still be standing. But the weight on my shoulders is heavier than ever.