This past weekend I helped my parents with some gardening and yard work.  It was a lot of fun, surprisingly.  Or not so surprisingly, I guess.  I’ve always liked doing work outside–mowing the lawn, shoveling the driveway, etc.  Being outside, side by side with my dad, doing some hard manual labor always made me feel more useful than being inside vacuuming or dusting.  But that’s another topic for another day.

On Sunday we worked together to first trim the bushes.  I used a trimmer to make sure all of them were perfectly rounded and flat on the top.  I felt like I was back in ceramics, smoothing out all the bumps on a newly spun pot.  It was nice to fashion it with my own hands.  Anyway, after that finished we had to cut up one of the trees in our yard that was having an identity crisis.

I say this because when we first bought the tree so many years ago all of its branches were growing downward.  It’s a crabapple tree, so its branches droop downward.  I guess that downward growth was forced by man when it was just a little tree, so now that it’s growing up, it’s starting to rebel just a bit.  A few of the branches on the top are growing straight up!  It looks like the tree is vomitting new green leaves.  Unfortunately for it, as healthy as the branches were, we called over Usman uncle and his chain saw to cut the new branches all of.  Sorry tree, but pain is beauty.

Anyway, with all the trees and bushes trimmed up and pretty, I noticed that our yard was still missing something… flowers!  So yesterday when I went with ammi to Randazzo’s, we picked up some flowers and brought them back home.  In the afternoon I went oustide to plant them. (more…)

I’m currently enrolled in the Bayyinah Institute class Meaningful Prayer.  And while the class itself is really amazing because it is already helping me focus in my salaah, I think it’s the random things that the teacher, Abdulnasir Jangda is mentioning in class that is a little bit better.  A few things:

1)  Algebra comes from the root ja-ba-ra, which means to correct or straighten with force–When asked what the connection was, he said it was because in Algebra you focus on  correcting and balancing an equation until both sides are equal.  I will definitely be telling my students this in the fall, insha’Allah.

2)  With great struggle comes great reward–obviously something we could have all figured out, but it was worded very nicely.  It has a ring to it, y’know?  One we can all relate to or maybe have heard something similar before in different words (ie–Uncle Ben Parker from Spiderman, “With great power comes great responsibility”)

3)  Knowledge is worth the struggle and time– another something I want to tell my students in the fall when they’re feeling frustrated and unmotivated.  The confines of what we can and cannot learn, when we can or cannot learn, or who can or cannot learn are built by people and are completely unnecessary.

4)  We are all slaves of Allah–there is no “nice” way to say it.  We are literally His property and nothing else.

5)  Rizq is often mentioned in the Qur’an with rain (weather).  This is a comparison because no one can ever control the rain (weather) and similarly no one can ever control their rizq.  It’s all about tawakkul in that case.

6)  Abu Bakr (AS) was not in town at the time of the Prophet sallalahu alayhi wasalaam’s death, and so when he came back to find his Rasul and best friend dead, and his daughter a widow, he went to their house.  When he saw the Prophet’s body covered with a white cloth, he lifted it off his face, kissed his forehead and said that he was beautiful in life and beautiful in death.  This story made me cry.

7)  The prescription of what should be done when you’re upset fall into line with doing salaah.  For example, when you’re upset, make wudu–which is done before prayer.  If that doesn’t work say the isti’aadah–which is done after the opening supplication of prayer.  If that doesn’t work, sit down–which is done during prayer.  Long story short–if you’re mad… go pray!

And that’s just from today!  Expect more later, insha’Allah… or take the class coming soon to a town near you!

http://www.bayyinah.com/

I know you’ve felt this way before:  you’ve invited guests to come over and you’re staring at the clock wondering, “When is everyone going to show up?  Do I have enough food?  That person never called me back to let me know if he was going to come… I wonder if he decided on it or not.  Is that someone at the door?  Nope… where is everyone?”

I know this is a common feeling people have because I’ve actually heard people complain about that exact circumstance before.  I’ve even heard people say that it makes them feel unimportant, kind of loserish, and even slightly rejected.

Is that the way a host or hostess should feel?  Someone who is so kind as to invite you over to his or her house?  Apparently not, according to our beloved Rasulullah sallalahu alayhi wasalaam

Abu Hurayrah (radhiyallaahu ‘anhu) narrated that the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “The rights of the Muslim upon the Muslim are six.” It was said, “And what are they Oh Messenger of Allaah?” He replied, “When you meet him, give him the greeting of peace, when he invites you, respond to his invitation, when he seeks your advice, advise him, when he sneezes and praises Allaah, supplicate for mercy upon him, when he becomes ills, visit him, and when he dies follow him (i.e. his funeral).”  [Sahih Muslim]

Imagine that, as a host it is your right as a Muslim that when you give an invitation, your guests respond.  It is your right that if they don’t have a valid excuse, they must attend your invitation.  It is your right that if your guests tell you they are coming, that they come on time. (more…)