Islamic YOLO?

Ride on any roller coaster at six flags this summer 
and you will most likely hear teens and kids alike 
yelling the phrase “YOLO” representing the infamous motto “you only live once”.  
A couple years back the phrase “carpe diem” was more 
common, meaning “seize is the day” in Latin. 
Why do phrases like this become so popular over time? What 
is it about the idea of living in the moment that many are so 
infatuated with, and does Islam follow this similar approach 
of focusing on the present? According to Dr. A’id al- Qarni, our 
life’s span is but one day, as if we were born in it and will die 
at the end of it. As Muslims, we should live our lives with this 
attitude in mind. In contrast to the irresponsible actions many 
use the excuse “YOLO” for, Islam teaches us to not merely use 
the “day for living” but instead teaches us that we should be 
“living for today”. Specifically, we should organize the hours of 
the day so that we can make years out of minutes and months 
out of seconds. In this way, we are taking this temporary day 
that is given to us and giving it life, rather than the other way 
around where we are simply finding activities in this world 
that can make us “live”. 
How exactly do we “live for today” or give life to our 
many repetitive days? The answer to this question lies where 
many other answers are, the heart. As narrated by Anas ibn 
Malik: “There is a piece of flesh in the body; if it is purified the 
whole body becomes pure but if it gets spoilt the whole body 
becomes spoilt, and that is none other than the heart” (quoted by Al Bukhari). 
If we use the days given to us to awaken 
every part of our heart by the remembrance of God, surely we 
can then succeed. If we wake up in the morning not expecting 
to live until the evening, we will find ourselves giving priority 
to our actions and obsessing less about the past. We will pray 
with a more wakeful heart, recite Quran with more understanding, 
and remember Allah the Almighty with full sincerity. 
This Ramadan, try and live with this mentality. Fast 
everyday like it is your last. Be conscious of every day and how 
it passes and be refined in what you do. With this attitude 
you will profit from every moment, develop and expand your 
abilities, and give life to your day. Leave the future alone until 
it comes to you. With that, the next time you’ll hear someone 
yelling “YOLO”, you’ll be able to smile to yourself knowing that 
you also “only live once” but just in this world. 
You’ll remember your duty to your Lord and you’ll remember to embrace 
today to remember God in order to make your next life better.  
You’ll remember Jannah and all its rewards and you'll focus on the path ahead with a sincere heart, inshAllah. 

The Hour Glass

Elegant, graceful, and silent
The grains of time drop like never ending rain
No amount of desperation can stop the precipitation
of such a delicate and timely creation
Piling up one by one in the same location
Never thinking twice about their destination 
We can all make our own explanation,
with just the use of our imagination
But in this situation, there is no room for realization
Time will flow with the same acceleration
No matter how we interpret this information
So listen to this hour glass and its personification
Not asking for any appreciation
Just your acceptance to trust its navigation
Into the world of time.
Where the grains climb and climb...
and climb.
So, build your sand castle midst the grains
Pile high your hopes and dreams
Stand out among the identical stones
and conquer your mountain of fears 
Be the hour glass and count your time
For you also could be stopped
if He were to not flip your hour glass
to start once again.

Drip...Drip...Drip

Silent Solitude

A month ago, my grandparents came to the United States to stay with us for a while. They are originally from Syria. They have lived all their lives in Syria. It’s where they grew up, it’s where they raised my mother, and it’s where they want to return. When they were here, I noticed that they rarely talked about the situation in Syria. They usually sat and watched the news with my dad, and my grandpa would occasionally make a remark here or there about the unfair rulings of Bashar. For some reason I imagined that when they came here they would use every given right to curse out at the regime, but they mostly watched the videos with saddened faces. One day, I decided I wanted to show my grandma one of the videos that showed the streets of Homs filled…filled with chanting men and women all demanding freedom. I was myself too intrigued in the video, the voices were captivating, the fervor was eminent and the courage was radiating. While I was watching the crowds jump up and down, chanting eloquent verses…I expected my grandma to comment. But nothing. I waited a while, and then I looked at her face from the side of my eye. I could see a tear streaming down her face. I could see despair in her eyes. I could see sorrow. I could see fear. But I could also see hope. I pretended I didn’t notice her crying as to not make her uncomfortable. She then raised her hands to the sky and prayed to God that he protect the innocent families. Slowly I felt the tears drop down my own face. This was my grandmother’s home. This was my father’s childhood. And now I was watching it burn in flames…from my ipad…in my house…in America. I then realized why my grandparents didn’t always curse out at the regime. It was because the story was in their heart. They knew that talk was cheap and that passion was stronger. They knew that God was greater. They knew that time is not on the oppressors side. Syria was in their hearts not because it was simply “their people”…when my grandma made that prayer that day, she prayed for all the oppressed. All the hungry. All the poor. She felt it in her heart. And we must feel it in ours. Then, we will be heard.

One Year Ago: Syrian Revolution

One year ago I barely knew where Baba Amr was. I used to think people liked Bashar. One year ago, I didn't really know the true meaning of what it meant to be free. Now, as a whole year has passed since the revolution started in Syria, the streets of Baba Amr will always be images etched in my mind. Bashar will remain a worthless animal, and freedom will forever be something I appreciate, after seeing how courageous the Syrians were in order to achieve it inshAllah.

Freedom Diaries (Tunisia)

Dear Freedom,

Now that I lie here in my simple grave outside Sidi Bouzid-surrounded by olive trees and blossoming almond trees, I want you to know how much I longed for you. Slapped in the face and forced to the ground, just to keep my family sound. Fined without reason, as if I were committing acts of treason. Everyday i'd walk to my cart, five kilometers to the local mart, in hopes of living my dream-even though my clothes were ripping from their seams. Everyday I dreamt of change, but all I knew of change, was of the small amount I kept in my pocket caged.It was all so strange. What an unfair exchange, and so I set myself in flames. To burn away my rage and humiliation, to feel your powers in my nation. 
Oh freedom, call me Mohamed Bouazizi and remember me.


From the Soils of Tunisia

Freedom Diaries (Egypt)-Feb.11 Commemoration

Dear Freedom, 

I feel so ashamed. Everyone saw me and yet they don't know me. To the whole world I was exposed, my rallying and modesty now juxtaposed. My "abaya" ripped open and my heart as well, trampled on like the very ground to which I fell. As women and as humans we asked for equality and freedom of speech, to that they dragged us down in hopes of making them farther to reach. You can call me the "girl with the blue bra" but remember, there is more to my story that put you in awe. Oh freedom, you were my shield when I was exposed. You gave me strength to battle rules that were imposed. Maybe someday we can reunite, with hope as our light and to the mountain peaks our flight. 

Love, 

A Woman's Voice in Egypt 

Faith and Hope

The Syrian regime has killed babies. It has starved families. It has blown up mosques. What it doesn't realize however is that God is not confined to the mosques, He is in the heart of every believer. Nothing can take away the Faith of the people. And that is the strongest weapon. Marching at one of the rallies downtown side by side with my brothers and sisters, it didn't matter that I couldn't feel my hands or feet because I COULD feel something that was truly beautiful: the love in each heart that chanted for a free and peaceful Syria. And that love and determination is what will create change, InshAllah ♥