[Photo by joesflickr]
My lovely friend, Organic Muslimah, reminds us of all those little, fortuitous events that point to the existence of the One who is the source of all blessing:
My personal miracle is too personal to write on these pages, but I can assure that these small miracles have only made me believe with the strongest convictions that there is a God and He is a very loving one. He listens and provides. He promises and fulfills.
Dawud Israel explains to us the importance of preserving the environment, citing verses from the Quran that urge us to contemplate what is in the heavens and the earth:
“Had Allah not given us the world around us with its beautiful nature, would we be able to realize that it had a Creator? That is to say, that if we were the only ones here on Earth–wouldn’t we think that we were ‘gods’? But Allah has put the world around us and shown us that there is One who is much greater than us.
But there is more to consider. The above ayah mentions that we are to contemplate upon the creation of the Heavens and Earth. How exactly are we to do this?
…
Now consider how people all around the world are destroying the Earth. Are we not losing wisdom and understanding? It’s one thing to lose nature by damaging the environment but to lose the wisdom that Allah teaches through it–means that we will eventually lose our understanding of ourselves and therefore a key avenue for coming closer to Allah SWT. That is why we must take a serious and hard look at preserving the environment.”
Two bloggers present their own takes on “Stuff White People Like”.
Shabana Mir’s tongue-in-cheek list of what Pakistani Americans love:
” 1. Cars – Hondas. Pakistanis have a deep loyalty to Japanese cars, and among those, to the Honda. We believe (it’s somewhere in the Pakistani creed) that Hondas never die, and that all other cars are mere cheap imitations of Japanese models.”
More at her blog.
And Angry Black Muslim Woman about what ‘the Negro Hipster likes’:
“Ethnic Food
Negro Hipsters may not like Fried Chicken, cause that’s so stereotypical. But they love Ethnic food, especially things Asian. The weirder the better, stuff like Vietnamese Vegan Chicken soup or some doughy concoction at the local Mayan Restaurant.Well, my list will continue. Feel free to add you own in the comments.Being the Only Black Person
Negro Hipsters like to be in environments where they are the only Black person. That way, the are the representative for all Black people, all the time. It also proves to them how black they are because that is the only thing that sets them apart from their non-Black co-workers, friends, or family.”
Fatima Barkatulla asks: “What did your wedding night mean to you?”
“I wrote this a few days ago and tried to capture the feelings I had after my wedding, that evening when for the first time I prayed with my husband, and spent my first hours with him.”
My secret locked, a tale untold,
The only key, within your hand,
Too sacred for them to behold,
Too pure for them to understand.
Last week I highlighted the importance of du’a, and how it can have a very real effect on the recipient, even when they’re thousands of miles away. Whilst on my Ijtema “rounds” this evening, I came across this entry by a desperate sister. I’m not exactly sure of her circumstances – all I know is that she feels very alone, and somewhat abandoned by her community. Thus I felt compelled to ask the online “ummah” to step in, and remember this sister in your prayers… after what I’ve heard about the power of du’a, I am positive she will feel much better for it, insha’Allah:
One sister called every week to check on me, but even she has stopped. My husband’s friends threw some money at us 8 months ago. The money is gone and so are they. I get the feeling that I’m forgotten because I’m american. I’ve even been told that I was raised differently so it’s easy. I’m american and this is the US what’s the problem. I’ve also been reminded that my mom is here so I should be thankful…. I guess by here she meant in the US, but that doesn’t do me much good considering she is 1400 miles away. I’ve also been told I should be happy he’s an ocean away. My pain has been ignored and I have been forgotten about. I don’t expect people to drop everything they are doing to help me, but I do expect a litle bit of concern and compassion. That is something, as of yet, I haven’t received.
It is certainly true that we, as adults, always try to respect one another. But do we extend the same courtesy to our children?
Umm Zaidah Nusaybah discusses at her blog:
“Respect is often associated with elders. We are taught to respect our parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents etc. The subject of respecting youngsters is quite alien. How often do we see children being spoken to in a derogatory manner? Being criticized for not doing something correctly or being shouted at for causing an accident? Have we ever stopped to think about how that child feels when we behave in such a manner? We need to ask ourselves, how would you feel if we were being treated in this way.”
Multiculturalmuslimah reminisces about the days that led to her acceptance of Islam and her conversion:
” I don’t know how to explain it, its a singular insanity that is all my own.
I would be at halaqas in abaya and khimar and when other sisters asked me, “So, how long have you been Muslim?”
I would pause for a second and then answer quite matter of factly, “Well, actually I’m not.”
What a strange creature I must have seemed.
And when that moment finally came where I realized that my thinking had changed from “if I ever became Muslim…” to “when I become Muslim…” it hit me like a bucket full of cold water. I probably even made a funny face.
I had denied it while living it for far too long.
A moving entry on the lessons of life and death, written by Asma T. Uddin of Peanut Gallery:
God works in mysterious ways. He takes a life and gives another, sometimes in the place of the former… But I’m not one for spiritual clichés. God’s profundity spans well beyond such neat little sound bytes, and I’m not sure it even makes rational sense to think that lives are somehow swapped for one another.
