that was an expression, which i probably should've put in quotes myself. my mum uses it a lot and i assumed it was fairly common, but perhaps not. "stepping out into the big bad world" describes the point when one is suddenly completely independent of one's parents/caretakers. i intended "the big bad world" as the context in which a young adult might get their very first taste of Islam if they are too sheltered.

i didn't realise your parents' varied backgrounds! and i'm glad while we can disagree on religious issues we can agree on issues of life-application, ie: parenting .

julz