The Debt of Prayer and Husn al Khitām: When I was a young girl, the day before a road trip was always ‘library day’. It was the day we gathered all the library books in the house and returned them to the library. As an adult, and as a Muslim, every trip I take (and […]
A Good Ending | Part 2 Read More »
He walked into my office and stood in front of my desk. A hardworking man, he struggled with class control and a language level below my usual expectations. I knew he was about to be fired, but I had been hoping to put it off for today. “What about my contract, ma’am?” He asked me,
Throughout history, Muslims have used the du’a in Surat Āl Imrān [Chapter 3, Quran] in the face of calamity and fearsome situations. Those to whom hypocrites said, “Indeed, the people have gathered against you, so fear them.” But it [merely] increased them in faith, and they said, “Sufficient for us is Allah, and [He is]
Sufficient for us is Allah, and [He is] the Best Disposer of Affairs! Read More »
In 1985 I was a brand new Muslim and Ramadan came in the summer. It was hot. It was humid. I was fasting. It was the most wonderful month of my life (up until that time). As years passed Ramadan moved into the winter; but every year when the temperature began to creep up I
The year: 1992 The city: Damascus A Quest for Bread The smell of bread wafts through the crisp morning air just as it has every morning for the past six weeks. It is 6:00 am, and I – on my way back from an early morning tajwid lesson – am starving. Every morning I suck
Every February I find myself with itchy eyes, non-stop sneezing, a scratchy throat, tight lungs and a little skin bubbling to boot. Allergies come early in Damascus. When I was a child I had an allergy test. The doctor scratched my back up with innumerable substances to determine what I was allergic to and what
I was asked to meet a ‘revert’ the other day. In this case I mean an Arab born Muslim who had traveled to Canada, fallen into sin and denial, then turned towards God through Christianity. She looked at me and said, “a believer knows another believer” and I shuddered. Had I had a shred of
Faith: An Inestimable Blessing Read More »
Alhamdulillah! We Sent 10,414,223 Salawat! Rabi al-Awwal came and went, and we reached our ten million goal of salawat. There were days I wondered and worried, and days I fussed and fretted. Then only a few hoursbefore the end of the month, the last 200,000 came in and we had reached our goal. I was
Ten Million Salutations Read More »
Ten years ago, I drove along a lengthy country path; on each side of me quaint squat homes surrounded by what looked to my American eyes like enlarged gardens, but were actually farm plots. Morning after morning I drove along that road, sometimes stopping to take a picture of sheep as they moseyed along, sometimes
One of the most difficult parts of traveling is packing. Once upon a time, international travel meant carrying two huge suitcases per person. So for each child I could fill up with stuff. In one corner went their clothes, and the rest was filled chock full with books, shoes, bags, and miscellaneous fun stuff.I remember
