Ramadan Kareem

Ramadan Reflections And Other Random Thoughts

Asalamu Alaykum Wa Rahmatulahi Wa Barakatu Everyone

Ramadan Mubarak!!! I've been so busy with Ramadan and haven't found time to blog. Wow, Can you believe Ramadan is almost over, Subhanallah!

I love this month of Ramadan, I feel that in this month, one becomes more self-conscious and more aware of their actions.

This Ramadan has been different for me in many ways. First off, it's the first Ramadan that I didn't have school the whole month of Ramadan (yay me! ). Second of all, I feel like I haven't been reading much Qur'an ((I want to start Reading more Qur'an during the rest of this month)), this is the first Ramadan that I have had Iftaar at the masjid ((something I have never done in the past eighteen years of my life)) and it is such a beautiful experience to break your fast with other Muslims ((outside of your family)), I also had the wonderful experience to organize theses Iftaars ..it feels great to be part of something bigger than yourself...

Okay now I'm just going to go on to Random events/thoughts that have happened recently..

So yesterday I was at the masjid (( there's A LOT of somalis that go to my masjid..like 99.99%)),
anyway.. I'm sitting in between two elderly woman reading Qur'an and out of nowhere they start talking about Somalia . The first woman mentions how the Al-Shabaab fighters said that they would double the fighting in this month of Ramadan ((I could have sworn fighting was prohibited in the month of Ramadan)) and she went on to talk about how they claim to be Islamic but they are not Islamic at all.. she said what's Islamic about killing children?..what did the children do??.. the children..the children..and then she started crying and she started cursing the Al-Shabaab fighters and the other woman said please dont curse them , let's pray for their guidance, and they both started talking about how Somalia used to be peaceful back in the day and how it is today.. how it's so dangerous to enter Mogadishu..and both of them were sitting there crying and while this is going on I'm just sitting there blinking back tears because I didn't want to cry..but Subhanallah that was an emotional incident to witness ...

So Lately, I've been thinking about death and akhira a lot, just like trying to imagine it , we always try to put off the thoughts of death and think that it's something that will come later in life, but I am trying to make myself accept the fact that we are all going to die, and just embrace it and think of it more often...

Thus my new motto is the Prayer of Prophet Ibrahim and his people when they said...

رَّبَّنَا عَلَيْكَ تَوَكَّلْنَا وَإِلَيْكَ أَنَبْنَا وَإِلَيْكَ الْمَصِيرُ

"O our Sustainer! In Thee have we placed our trust, and unto Thee do we turn: for unto Thee is all journeys' end" (Surah Mumtahina: Ayat 4)

Inshallah I hope to make the best of the remaining of Ramadan , Inshallah I want to attend Tahajjud and/or do Itikaaf ..

Ma'Salaam!