What Have You Done For Your Mother Today?

And lower unto them the wing of submission and humility through mercy, and say: “My Lord! Bestow on them Your Mercy as they did bring me up when I was small.”

17:25

 

 

Small tests

Early on in my first semester of social work, our professors were going over where we would be placed in order to implement the skills we had nurtured throughout our learning term. I for one, had been assigned to be in a male dominated area. Because of my great discomfort with the situation, I met with my professor to see if there were other placements available because the one I had currently been assigned would not be conducive to my learning. Nor would it allow me to practice the skills I had so eagerly honed in on.

 I explained to him that for religious purposes, it was not the most practical situation for me to be placed in. He paused for a minute and then replied by saying well,” So and so, there comes a time where you have to decided what parts of your religion you will hold on to and what parts you may need to let go of”.  My professor is male and normally when speaking to him I divert my eyes so as not to meet his gaze for too long. I paused and digested the words he had just said to me. As soon as his words registered, I repeated them in my head, and this is the conversation I had with myself.

 Did he just ask me to decide what part of my religion I need to let go of

 He did not just ask me what part of my religion I need to let go off

 Wow I really think that this man in all his audacity, had the nerve to ask me what part of MY ISLAM I was willing to drop!

At this point I raised my head and looked him dead in his eyes and said “I am a Muslim, and that means adhering to all aspects of Islam, I am never, nor will I ever, God willing, let go of any part of my religion.”

 Because the professor knows me to be a respectful and quiet student, he was able to tell how serious I was, and he did not pursue the matter any further. I am not an individual who is easily irritated or insulted but what had just transpired between me and my professor really saddened me. What flaw had he seen in my character that had given him the idea that I was willing to compromise my deen in order to please him, or adhere to something as menial as the rules of the program over my own beliefs.

At that point I made a resolve and promised myself that I would no longer sit silently in that class but rather speak out and allow my views to be heard. Mind you of all 300 students in my program, I am the only female, Muslim who is not Caucasian. Nevertheless I was determined to teach my class mates about Islam whether they wanted to hear it or not.  And besides I can not expect to just declare my Islam and act as though that is enough, for Allah swt clearly tells us in the Quran:

Do the people think that they will be left to say, “We believe,” without being put to the test?

 May Allah swt makes us amongst those who accept his decree and show patience in the face of adversity, and sincere thankfulness in times of peace.

Surah Nisa

Bismillahi rahmani raheeem

Often times due to the distance my school is from my home, I spend a lot of time in my car for my morning commute. Every morning I start my car to find the setting of my radio on CD, and am greeted with the sweet sounds of Shiekh Abdul Basit blaring back at me. The culprit would be my dearest beloved mother, who is currently determined to memorize surah Anbiyah, and Abdul Basit is her sheikh of choice. I am far more old school and prefer the exhilarating sounds of Muhaisini, whom some may argue is far too quick, on the good old’ tape player. But ever since I was a young child, there was nothing more calming to me than the sounds of this sheikh’s voice, and he was always my first go to choice for reciters. Currently I am particularly intrigued by his emotional and soul awakening recitation of surah Al-Nisa. Every morning as I approach my schools over crowded parking lot and watch as my peers hurry to make it to their respective classes before the enslavement that is this dunya grips them, and the apprehension that is their success for the future, I hear an Ayah that remains with me for the duration of my day. And it never fails to leave me with a chill I am unable to shake.

(56) إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ بِآيَاتِنَا سَوْفَ نُصْلِيهِمْ نَارًا كُلَّمَا نَضِجَتْ جُلُودُهُمْ بَدَّلْنَاهُمْ جُلُودًا غَيْرَهَا لِيَذُوقُواْ الْعَذَابَ إِنَّ اللّهَ كَانَ عَزِيزًا حَكِيمًا

56. ” Verily those who disbelieved in Our Signs, soon We will cast them into Fire so oft as their skins shall be burnt We will change them for other skins, that they may taste the torment. Surely Allah is the Mighty, the Wise. “

And so, it begins

And so it Begins

Asalamu alaykum warahmatullahi wabarakatu

Bismillahi Rahmani Ar-raheem

For some time now, I have been meaning to start a blog, and as they say there is no time like the present. The only downfall is that the present happens to be 2 am in the morning, for a social work student a week away from finals, with text books and papers hauntingly staring and screaming to be completed. So the most logical thing for me to do is slowly but casually shift around and give the books my back. There, HA HA take that. And victory is mine inshAllah. And with that I begin my first BLOG.

Junk Upon my Table Top

They say you can tell a lot about a person from the items on their desktop (and no I do not mean the junk on your computer screen. But rather the old school four legged bed mate).  So what better way for me to introduce myself than to attempt to decipher the significance of these items and what they say about me and my life.

1.   My reading lamp

2.   A black and white vase, where I keep many important documents

3.   A half full cup of over sugared coffee

4.   An almost empty cup of juice

5.   A box of Oreos

6.   Vitamin D pills

7.   An english translation of the Holy Quran

8.   My Riyadh As- Saleheen/Gardens of the Righteous

9.   And finally a single earring.

 (Note that all these items happen to arranged in straight symmetrical lines)

a) It is far too early for you to judge me, and 

 b) No I do not suffer from OCD

Later Days ( I must confess, I thoroughly enjoy children’s cartoones such as the WEEKENDERS, and no, I am not ashamed of this regardless of my older age, walhamdulilah

 

Areesala

Out.