A gift from the Almighty… a sacred trust!

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

By the grace of Allah, we were blessed with a beautiful baby girl over the weekend. Despite being a 2nd child and having to wait almost 9 months for her, nothing can prepare you for the excitement, nervousness and emotions of child birth. 

Alhamdulillah it went well and after a few (long) hours, we were holding our little baby girl. Occassions like these are filled with emotions and bring back so many memories. It’s almost as if you can feel the chemical reactions in your body and if you’re not careful, you’ll feel some of the liquids drip down your cheeks 😉

In the months and weeks leading up to the birth, I took an interest in all things baby related and began doing some reading to recap on some of the information I had learnt with our first child. After various articles, google searches and lectures on the topic, there was one statement that caught my attention and resonated over time… that Children are a sacred trust from the Almighty entrusted unto parents. 

We were intrigued with the simplicity yet profoundness of this statement which also made naming her very easy… Amaanah! Sacred Trust or Entrusted in English. I hope that her name will always serve as a reminder to us that she is indeed an Amaanah from Allah. 

Perhaps this is the inspiartion I’ve been seeking. 

A new chapter In Sha Allah.

2012 closing…

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

 

Alhamdulillah, I am grateful for seeing the end of another year. Every day is a blessing from Allah whether you live by the Lunar or Gregorian Calendar or whether you ‘celebrate’ New Years or not.

After a few hectic weeks, we took a few days off to spend some family time together and celebrate our son’s 2nd birthday as well as our 4th wedding anniversary. These dates or milestones really put things into perspective and are sometimes good reminders about the things we take for granted. I could not believe my son was already 2 and the next day I couldn’t fathom being married for such a long time. The change in routine was good and gave me an opportunity to reflect on 2 of the most important people in my life. Some may call it celebration but I like to think of it as an appreciation for my son who just turned 2 and my wife who’s been with me for the last 4 years. I probably feel the same way every year but I can not believe how fast 2012 went by.

2012 was a big year, lots happened, so much changed and with the change came a few big challenges. My sister got married and moved to America, I quit my job in public practise, began working as a virtual business consultant and finally kicked-ff my online supplement business. Circumstances changed drastically with my dad’s illness and I guess things haven’t quite gotten back to normal since then. I haven’t yet had the strength to write about some of the things I learnt and felt during this challenging time but perhaps I might, Insha Allah.

With so much uncertainty and so much going on at home, time just flew by I’m glad I was able to stop and take a break for a few days to appreciate the blessings in my life. There are many things I wish I had done, so much that was done and as always a few regrets. My aim is to do the things I wish I had done, appreciate the things I did accomplish and work on reducing the regrets Insha Allah.

2012 closes, our holiday was the perfect transition into the new year and now… 2013! Alhamdulillah!

 

 

 

My little boy is 2…

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

My little boy turns 2 at midnight tonight. It’s been an amazing 2 years but I can’t believe he’s grown so fast. I can still remember the day he was born and as I flick through the photos I have on my phone, I can’t fathom how time has passed and how much he’s grown. I remember the emotion I felt the day he was born and every so often he would do something that would reignite those emotions within me. Reflecting on the last 2 years has given me those jitters again tonight and I am so proud of him. I’m so grateful to Allah for blessing us with such a bundle of joy and allowing him to grow and develop the way he has over the last 2 years.

Kids often get taken for granted and we sometimes fail to acknowledge what a blessing they are. Someone once told me that I should work hard while my kid is young so I can spend time with him when he’s older and more understanding, after spending the last 9 months at home including 6 weeks of babysitting while the wife was studying, I disagree. The time you get with your kids is priceless whether they can understand it or not, even they’re too young to remember it, you always will and I am so grateful that I could spend so much time with him and could watch him grow and develop every day.

As he gets older, our responsibilities grow too and I pray that we always do what’s best for him. He has definitely been the coolness of my eyes and tonight I pray that he always is Insha Allah.

Perhaps one day when you’re older and you read your old man’s blog on some futuristic tech gadget… Know that I love you!

Allah, grant my little boy good health and a long, prosperous life, allows us to take care of him while he’s young and let him take care of us when we’re old!

Ameen!

A blue Thursday

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

It’s 11:30 AM on a blue Thursday morning, as I lay in bed with my 21 month old son, I can’t help but remember what blue, rainy mornings were like in the office.

Rainy days on the coast made it difficult to get out of bed and were the cause of many off my ‘sick days’ at work. I used to look out the window and wish I could be at home in bed, maybe watch a movie or 2 or 3 😉

Now that I’m home, these memories make the experience even more enjoyable… If you actually remember them that is. It’s so easy to get stuck into a new routine, you sometimes just forget about your old ones and neglect to appreciate the change.

Make the best of your time and appreciate the little things that happen. By being aware of the things we wish for and sometimes ask for, we can reflect on our circumstances and actually see that our prayers have been answered. Sometimes we’re just too busy to acknowledge the blessings before our eyes.

Had an awesome blue Thursday and I’m grateful for the changes in my routine! Alhamdulillah!

Taking Care Of Your Children Through Good Deeds…

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

Many of you might be familiar with the story of Musa (A.S) and His encounter with Al-Khidr. For anyone who isn’t, watch this space and Insha Allah I will summarise the story at a later time. There were 3 events that took place on this journey, in summary, they were:

  1. Al-Khidr made a hole in the boat of the men that assisted them to cross the sea
  2. Al-Khidr killed a child
  3. Al-Khidr reinforced a broken wall in a town whose people were selfish and inhospitable
I’d like to focus on the 3rd event that took place as there is a great lesson to be learnt.  Beneath the wall lay a treasure that belonged to 2 orphans, so in order to protect the treasure from the people of the town, Al-Khidr fixed the wall. It was revealed that the reason he was ordered to fix the wall for the orphans was because their father was a righteous man.
“And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the city, and there was beneath it a treasure belonging to them, and their father was a righteous man; so your Lord desired that they should attain their maturity and take out their treasure, a mercy from your Lord, and I did not do it of my own accord. This is the significance of that with which you could not have patience.” (Surah al-Kahf)
Sa`id bin Jubayr narrated from Ibn `Abbas: “They were taken care of because their father was a righteous man, although it is not stated that they themselves were righteous.”

In this is a great lesson for parents today. Uphold the commandments of Allah and Allah will take care of your children whether you are with them or not.