Student of the Month – February
Uripah Samikun, raised in Indonesia and currently residing in Durham, NC, started Ribaat classes with the support and encouragement of her husband during the Spring 2022 semester. She registered in hopes of attaining a better understanding of Allah’s Words for herself and her teaching efforts, with the intention of pursuing a Tajwid certificate. Now, she cannot help but find her eyes glancing toward the Teacher certificate, as well.
After the Freeze
An icy freeze can be quite harsh. Many living things are not able to survive it. Others die a little bit, holding on to just enough life to regrow again once the freeze is over. A freeze can also be a beautiful thing to behold, at once somber and silent, foretelling a chance for a stronger, brighter future.
Student of the Month – January
Aida Azlin is a Singaporean residing in Morocco, who runs an online global community called AA Plus for Muslim women. For the last eight years, she has been writing a weekly newsletter called Tuesday Love Letters. Aida is a proud ‘cat mom’ and loves to host guests in her home.
Finding Truth in a Post-Truth World
It was a cold winter day and bits of icy snow were still falling on the windshield. I was in the passenger seat of our station wagon and my mother’s mouth was set in “stress.” She said, “When we go inside, you will hear me apologize for being late, and blaming the snow. This is a white lie. We shouldn’t ever lie. But if I don’t, I might lose the appointment.” I was a little bit in awe—my mother was about to lie. I walked into the hair salon with ears and eyes paying close attention. And she did mumble something to the receptionist about our precarious ride to the shop, after which we were hustled over to a waiting space and quickly given our turns.
The Light at the End of the Tunnel of Trees: My Qur’an Journey by Sakeena Ahmed
This is an acrylic painting that I made for my final project of my Ribaat Academic Institute Tajwid class that I was enrolled in this semester with Anse Dr. Saadia Mian.
Student of the Month – December
Born and raised in Wisconsin, USA, Maryam Marie LaConte is a mother and grandmother who has lived in many different places over the course of her 72 years. She attributes her most important experiences to her twelve years in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from 1986 to 1998, where she worked and embraced Islam. She was able to study tajweed and Arabic while there, and is now returning to traditional studies after retirement through the Ribaat Academic Institute.
