a canadian sister writes this in her latest enrty.

It seems to me that for the majority, money is the universal desire in life. Apparently, money can solve all your problems. The trouble of being poor can be solved by money. The trouble from starvation and lack of food in parts of the world can be solved by money. The suffering of people in third world countries (and some even in first world!) can be solved by money. We would all be happy and smiley smiley because we would buy anything our hearts desired, right?

Not so much, actually.

I know a person who almost married into an extremely wealthy family. They earned something like, $20, 000 a day. I wonder what it would feel like if I were the girl in that situation, but it always leads me to think: would I be any happier?

Perhaps I would be able to buy all the Creme de la Mer's I wanted, or be whisked away to a tropical vacation spot at my slightest whim. I could live in a huge, fancy house, and have a personal chef to cook me 5-star meals. But the thing is, to what extent would I be doing all that? How many cars or thousand-dollar-purses would I need to buy to continually satisfy my appetite? Eventually, wouldn't I get tired of it?

If I think about it now and list the happiest moments of my life, they had absolutely nothing to do with money, alhumdulillah. I know the things that make me happy right now and will perhaps make me happy in the future will also have nothing to do with money. And it is with these thoughts that I feel grateful for everything I have. The real blessings in my life are not the clothes I own, or the pairs of shoes or even a car, but having lungs to breathe and eyes that see clearly, because material goods can only get you so far. The Ancient Egyptians would bury their pharaohs with all the gold and wealth they possessed - but will it really help them in the grave?

This is why I created a list of all the things that make me happy (in no particular order). The funny thing about them is that I probably share some (if not all) of them with you :)

1. Realizing how lucky I am to have been born a Muslim
2. #2's a secret.
3. The time I've spent with family
4. Doing good in school

5. My nephew :)


And I know the things that will make me happy in the future insh'Allah will most likely be:

1. Hajj
2. Married life

And perhaps, the most important thing that will give me and you and anyone who does this eternal happiness (literally!), is pleasing Allah, As-Samad (The Satisfier of All Needs), and attaining jannah.

tuesday blues by Dayana

well, i guess i got the polyvore bug with the hijabi fashion. hehe, thanks to some stylish hijabi fashionistas out there, like sisters basbousa, ange, pixie, muneera just to mention a few. but where it really started for me was the sisters at welovehijab.com. MasyaAllah, they really opened me up to a lot. through blogs like these, i fell in love with the abaya, and since i'm a lover of the colour black, of course i'm so into the all black arab style.

honestly, i've begun to admire sisters from all over the world especially those who are in the west. even those in the land down under. and most of them are converts. Subhanallah, they're got stylish fashion sense...and what's more important and inspiring, is that they do not abandon the Islamic way of dressing up. what i mean? for a few rules, covering up, means covering your curves and bossoms. covering up, means modest wear, not over-the-top, not halfway done.

hehe. pictures taken off sister pixie's blog. to find out what she's said about the above pics, give her a visit! :)

actually, before i started wearing the hijab, i was reading welovehijab.com and this entry really helped:

7 QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF BEFORE YOU WEAR THAT OUTFIT

1. Am I following my understanding of hijab as best as I can?

There are so many different opinions about what hijab is and what it is not. Some Muslim women only wear black, some Muslim women cover their faces, some Muslim women wear specific regional styles of clothing, and some Muslim women mix it all together. Whatever you choose to wear, as a Muslimah, you are responsible for finding out what Allah expects of you. My beliefs of how we have to dress are clearly presented on this website, but you have to do your own research. Ask Allah for guidance and then follow what you understand hijab to be to the best of your ability. As long as your intentions and actions are good, Allah will be pleased with you, inshallah. And that’s all that really matters, isn’t it?

read the rest here.

 

alright, so there was a lot i had to think about. not to mention, wondering if i'd be able to get through the week considering the kind of clothes i have in my wardrobe! too tight, too short, no sleeves, too hot. and not to mention, the lack of scarves to cover me head!

hijabilove's on a sickie by Dayana

but praise be to Allah...He made it all easy for me. My mom's got only one daughter you see...and she was more than happy to know that i was converting to a hijabi. so she started handing me over bagful of scarfs since then and it's not stopped! to be honest, i've only shopped like, 5 scarfs for myself in the past 5 months or so being a hijabi! Allahuakbar. as for clothing...i thank all the sisters in the internetosphere for sharing their stories, their polyvore sets and their passion for Islam and pleasing Allah. i managed to mix and match here and there and praise be to Allah...i entered the Islamic School. you know...i can't elaborate everything...but that is God's decree and i am blessed and grateful to Allah for it. it's all been predetermined by Him, and He knows best, He knows what we do not. all i had to do was seek Him, pray to Him and open my eyes. everything else just came together.

if it was meant to 'be'...it will, no matter how much we like it or not.

In an authentic hadith, it was reported that the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) said:

If you ask, then ask of Allah, and if you seek help, then seek it from Allah. And know that if the whole of the nation were to rally together in order to bring benefit to you in anything, they would not benefit you except with that which Allah has written for you. And if they were to gether together in order to inflict harm upon you with something, they would not harm you except with that which Allah has written upon you. The pens have been raised and the pages have dried.

Don't Be Sad, 2003, p.103

i could say that i would not have been a hijabi, or thisclose to being one, if i was still working at the aussie embassy. i could also say, if not for that 5 months break after quitting, i wouldn't have gotten to know Allah and Islam the way i have. only Allah would know what would have been. on the other hand, everything i have seen and felt in this life, all makes sense to me, that they're all blessings in disguise. always a lesson to learn...always all the time. time is not to be wasted...for time is precious.

"No person knows what he will earn tomorrow, and no person knows in what land he will die"
- Qur'an 31:34 -
Don't Be Sad, 2003, p.427.

on the other hand, this is the book that Allah guided me to, that changed me altoghether. don't get me wrong. i still get angry and blow up at times. i still face hard times, and heck it's a different kind all the time...but to be honest with you...and to be seriously no joke with you...

i'm well out of that damn hole. and moving forward. even if some days i've had it and thrown the big Q to Allah like WHYYYYYY??? and sometimes out come flying effs here and there...but He is Merciful, He is Kind...i just need to remind myself what i'm here for, and seek His refuge. seek His forgiveness, seek for patience.

patience. patience. that's my theraphy. Allah, the Qur'an, books, blogs, forums, people, life...and more. 

Allah burdens not a person beyond his cope
- Qur'an 2:286 -
Don't Be Sad, p.387

Allah does not test us in order to destroy us, but rather to assess our patience and degree of faith
Don't Be Sad, p.384

ooookay. this entry is so jumbled uppppp! also, i'm taking quotes and putting it all over the place. twhen you read the book, it's so beautiful to read those words together with explainations and stories and all that. i'm just not doing any justice. sighhhss.

Nevertheless...ALLAHUAKBAR! i love YOU!

every day i feel a little different. i learn a little more than before and i have new wishes, new prayers, new dreams. i love the new change, the development, the setbacks and the challenges. at the same time, i feel lousy, demotivated and feel like giving up. at times i believe i'm being molded, and other times i feel like a fake. am i a fake? i pray to do things sincerely. that's my biggest goal. and the more i go through this life, the more i am more than happy to do things for Him. it makes so much sense and it makes me feel so much more at peace. honestly, it's such a great feeling...though tough times hitting the hardest, it's the most beautiful feeling i've experienced...actually, one of the most beautiful. cause He's blessed me with a gazillion others.

alhamdulillah.

yes, everything's a blessing. when i think about it, and not giving up, all i think of is Him, protecting me. knowing every move i make, every step i take, everything. nothing happens without His knowledge, and i feel absolutely relieved because of it. it lifted the heaviest burden off my shoulders, off my mind...off my system.

even for love...i love, because of Him. it makes so much difference when i think about Him all the time. and here i am, writing this, because of His light. subhanallah...everything i come across these days when it comes to Him, i wish i could share it with the whole world. no matter what your religion.

islam is...the way of life.

no doubt about that whatsoever.

i dig Islam. He is our Creator. of course He knows best!

what the heck was i thinking? what the heck have we all been brainwashed to think??

shaytaan...you're the reason behind so many things. you've become my good friend for too long. so maybe my childhood days wasn't a norm. but you really had me going.