All you got is N:0W

An Arab poet once said, “The past is lost forever, and that which is hoped for is from the unseen, so all that you have is the present hour.” The past is never to return, the future is yet to come, and so we are left with the present day—this present moment. Time is something so often discussed and so often checked. Time is the first thing that pops up on your phone screen, it’s the one that hangs on almost every wall, the one that some even tie to their wrists. Time controls our nights and days; without time the day would not turn into night and the night would not turn into day. We know how time is counted and we know what time brings, yet why do we often find ourselves “running out of time” or feeling like there “ aren't enough hours in the day”? These questions can only be answered when we realize what time really is, how we should perceive it, and how we should manage it. What is time to a Muslim? In today’s society we often hear the phrase “time is money”, but is that really what it is? For when our time is done, will money be there to save us? Truly for a Muslim, time is not money, time is Allah. Abu Hurayra reported: I heard Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) saying: "Allah the exalted and Glorious said: The son of Adam abuses Time, whereas I am The Time. In my hand are the days and the nights”. This means that whatever occurs during the night or during the day-throughout time in general-happens only by Allah’s will and His design; according to His knowledge and by His decree in which no one else has any share. Whatever Allah wills to be will happen and whatever He wills not to, shall never be. For this reason, we should never curse time, we should never be angered by the way that things turn out, and we should always be conscious that Allah is the one who disposes of the affairs that unfold in time. This should be our mindset when we deal with time.

                Now that we know what time really is, we must perceive it in the correct manner; this is through looking at the lenses of solely the present day, the present hour, and the present moment. Being preoccupied with the past and dragging past woes into the present will only bring an unstable and unsound mind. At the same time, being anxious over events in the future only adds worry and stress. Rest assured that your Lord who provided you with solutions to yesterday can similarly provide for what is to come tomorrow.  And so, look to the present moment. Let events flow in their predestined path and have faith in Allah’s timings. “Do not cross the bridge until you reach it”—tomorrow has yet to arrive and you have the present moment to prepare for it.

                In knowing what time is and with what lenses to look at it, we still have to realize that we are “managers “of our time. It will run its predestined path, but it is the requirement of each of us to put in effort at every moment. Every day should be seen as one goal. The Prophet (pbuh) said, “When the morning comes upon you, then do not expect to see the evening, and when you see the night, do not expect to see the morning.” Do not have lofty and long term goals but rather short term appropriate goals that you can accomplish and surpass within the day. Expect death at any moment and do your best in doing good deeds. With this mindset, you will be able to concentrate and spend all of your energies on being productive each day. If I told you today was your last day to live, how would you spend the day? This should be our mindset every day. Pray like it is your last prayer every time. Respect your parents as if you will not be seeing them tomorrow. Live for the present moment and find comfort in the fact that what has been planned for you has been planned by the Best of Planners. Avoid fretting about the future, forget about the pains of the past, and embrace this present moment. In the remembrance of Allah you will find joy in your time and in His obedience you will find reassurance. Don’t think about when you can start to make changes, the time is N:OW.   

An Easy Game of Tic Tac Toe?

Tic Tack Toe, three in a row. Just match the three symbols, X or O, and you're a winner I always thought. Notice a pattern and fill in the blanks, it's one of the easiest games I always thought. But play the game now with any intellectual mind, and you'll find a once too simple game something almost impossible to win. Cat's game, they call it. Life is a cat's game: you win some and you lose some and sometimes the winner isn't immediately known. It's not always as easy as filling in the last O--sometimes life places that O before you do and you have to find a way around it. Sometimes someone finds the pattern before you. Sometimes it's harder than just filling in the blank. But, ultimately, you win if you don't think you lose. Love the game. Appreciate the blessings that surround your day to day struggles and remember that life can be simple if you make it so. Remember you destination and your commitment to Allah, and you'll notice that the struggles in your life are either a lesson or a blessing--two things that you can ultimately benefit from. So if you find yourself frustrated by the events in your life or those happening around the world, remember that beauty can be found when we follow the simple instructions that God has given us. They are the answer to every puzzle. No matter the conflict, love the One who can give you strength to get through it all and have faith that Allah is on your side. Love what's around you. After all, it is XOXO.

Jelly Beans

Green. Yellow. Pink. Blue. Lime green. Popcorn yellow. Bubble gum pink. Sky blue. One Bag. 100 jelly beans in a heterogeneous mixture. To look for a color? To scavenger for a flavor? Or to to let the odds determine your experience? A true parallel to the day-to-day socializing occurrence. The friends you make, the acquaintances you encounter, the differing personalities you come across--they were all meant to cross paths with you and somehow affect your story, even if for just a page from the book that makes up your life. Never burn bridges and close doors of potential friendship. Don't judge the jelly bean by its color, don't continue to pick the one you always enjoy. Step out of your comfort zone; keep an open mind. Pick a jelly bean while closing your eyes. You never know, the "mystery" bean might surprise you.

Beautiful Imperfection

Coffee stains my porcelain cup as ink spills on to this neatly penned page. Blotted with unease, spilled with grace; what’s permanent and imperfect is not always flawed. Imperfection clings to me and yet it frees me. I feel liberated from straight lines and boundaries. I seek bold images and lasting impressions. Like the art that remains after one sip, my words scramble and rearrange into paragraphs enclosing my thoughts. The white of my paper and the white of my cup create a contrast of who I am. I am flawed; I am imperfect—take a sip of my words.

We are Ants

A small hardworking ant: so minuscule to the human eye, yet so vital in its natural functions. A player on a large team, but an individual in its survival. Most of the time, we too are ants-so carried away with the busy work, the day to day tasks, the collecting of things, so busy that we often can’t see the big picture. Like ants on a beautifully designed carpet, we scurry on not knowing that we are walking on beauty, simply because we cannot see the full design yet. It’s important we take a second and look around: to remember the destination and to remember that where we are is truly beautiful, in the present moment and in the greater picture…if we just took the time to reflect. So don’t just hear what's around you, listen. Don’t just look, see. Be a hard working ant, but remember you have the capability of looking at the big picture.

Ego Amongst the Dead

Narrated Abu al-Darda: “Worship God as if you see Him, and count your ego amongst the dead, and beware of the supplication of the oppressed." (Quoted by al-Tabarani) In this hadith, we can learn a wide variety of things varying from conquering the ego to detaching from the world and its desires. In the first line we see what is described as “ihsan” or worshiping God as if we see Him. This level of spiritual excellence is not something easily achieved. In order to see God everywhere, one must not see oneself anymore. This means, we must extinguish our concupiscent desires and detach from the world in a humbling manner. Only by eliminating our egos and remembering our graves, can we begin to journey on this path towards “ihsan”. Before reaching this level, we must perfect the levels before it. Preceding “ihsan” are the levels of “Islam” and “Iman”. Islam involves the basics: practicing the five pillars sincerely and testifying that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad (pbuh) is his Messenger. In order to reach “Iman”, a deeper degree of acknowledgment is required. “Iman” is to believe in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and to believe in divine destiny, both the good and the evil thereof. In all of this, the Muslim is aware that life is a test: that we will be held accountable for our actions and that the Angels on our shoulders record all of our deeds. The level discussed in this hadith however, is the highest level of spiritual excellence: worshiping God as if you see Him. This means you are aware that although you do not see Allah (swt), He sees you.This is the level of righteousness, the level of perfection, the level of doing and saying the ultimate good, the level of I'hsan. As Muslims, we must always strive to reach this level of Faith. And the easiest way to do so is to detach from the world and “count our ego amongst the dead”. By doing so, we forget our selfish desires and we focus on praising the One who created us, the One who sees all that we do. Whoever purifies his character will extinguish jealousy, hatred, greed, anger, pride and all the other maladies of the soul from his heart. Once the heart is pure, it will illuminate all that you see and do. With the recent events in Syria and all over the world, many have asked, “what can I do?!” and “why is there so much hate?” Eliminating these evil things, believe it or not, starts with you. If you want to eliminate all that his dark in the world, cleans your heart until it is able to provide light for the darkness and hope for despair. If you want to eliminate the hate in the world, start by loving for your brother what you love for yourself. Dua is a powerful tool that can help you reach this level of “ihsan”. We must remember to pray for the oppressed, detach from the world, and purify our hearts from impure desires…surely then we will find peace.      

Submission

Eid Al-Adha is an important time of year where we as Muslims honor the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his only son Ismail as an act of obedience to God, before God intervened to allow him to sacrifice a sheep instead. We all know the beautiful story, but there is so much more than knowledge that we can attain from this story. The story teaches a multitude of lessons and demonstrates ideal qualities of pious Muslims that we should strive to imitate. Indeed it was the greatest test for Ibrahim: to sacrifice his only son, one born to him after reaching old age and longing for a son for a very long time. Even with that, Ibrahim demonstrated willingness to sacrifice all his belongings to God out of faith and humility. This same submission can be seen in Ismail. After being told the news from his father, Ismail, the pious son of a pious father, was committed to submit to God and give up his own life. This is true faith: to trust Allah in all circumstances in life for He always knows best. This story is the epitome of true trust and submission to God which hundreds of Muslims try to live by. So as we go about our daily lives, there will be times when we don’t want to give things up because it may seem difficult. There will be times when the future will scare us and so we cling to the past. By learning to submit to God in all circumstances of our lives, we learn that in the end, God is the best of planners. If what’s ahead scares you, just remember Allah(swt), the Most High, and go forth in your path with confidence. Give up the worldly desires and submit to God alone, the One who gave you life and continues to help you live.